Tissue-specific deletion of the coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor protects mice from virus-induced pancreatitis and myocarditis

In cultured cells, infection by group B coxsackievirus (CVB) is mediated by the coxsackievirus and adenovirus receptor (CAR), but the importance of this molecule in CVB-induced disease has not been determined. We generated mice with tissue-specific ablation of CAR within each of two major CVB target organs, the pancreas and heart. In the pancreas, deletion of CAR resulted in a significant reduction in both virus titers and virus-induced tissue damage. Similarly, cardiomyocyte-specific CAR deletion resulted in a marked reduction in virus titer, infection-associated cytokine production, and histopathology within the heart. Consistent with the in vivo phenotype, CAR-deficient cardiomyocytes resisted infection in vitro. These results demonstrate a critical function for CAR in the pathogenesis of CVB infection in vivo and in virus tropism for the heart and pancreas.