Infection causes reduced activity, anorexia, and sleep, which are components of the phylogenetically conserved but poorly understood sickness behavior. We developed a Caenorhabditis elegans model to study quiescence during chronic infection, using infection with the Orsay virus. The Orsay virus infects intestinal cells yet strongly affects behavior, indicating gut-to-nervous system communication. Infection quiescence has the sleep properties of reduced responsiveness and rapid reversibility. Both the ALA and RIS neurons regulate virus-induced quiescence though ALA plays a more prominent role. Quiescence-defective animals have decreased survival when infected, indicating a benefit of quiescence during chronic infectious disease. The survival benefit of quiescence is not explained by a difference in viral load, indicating that it improves resilience rather than resistance to infection. Orsay infection is associated with a decrease in ATP levels, and this decrease is more severe in quiescence-defective animals. We propose that quiescence preserves energetic resources by reducing energy expenditures and/or by increasing extraction of energy from nutrients. This model presents an opportunity to explore the role of sleep and fatigue in chronic infectious illness.

感染会导致活动减少、厌食和睡眠，这些是系统发育上保守但知之甚少的疾病行为的组成部分。我们利用奥赛病毒感染，开发了秀丽隐杆线虫模型来研究慢性感染期间的静止状态。奥赛病毒感染肠道细胞，但强烈影响行为，表明肠道与神经系统之间存在沟通。感染静止具有反应性降低和快速可逆的睡眠特性。 ALA 和 RIS 神经元都调节病毒诱导的静止，尽管 ALA 起着更重要的作用。具有静止缺陷的动物在感染时存活率降低，这表明在慢性传染病期间静止是有益的。静止的生存益处并不能用病毒载量的差异来解释，这表明它提高了恢复能力，而不是对感染的抵抗力。奥赛感染与 ATP 水平下降有关，这种下降在静止缺陷动物中更为严重。我们建议，静止通过减少能量消耗和/或增加从营养物中提取能量来保存能量资源。该模型提供了一个探索睡眠和疲劳在慢性传染病中的作用的机会。