The effect of equine herpesvirus type 4 on type-I interferon signaling molecules

Fatai S. Oladunni, Stephanie Reedy, Udeni B.R. Balasuriya, David W. Horohov, Thomas M. Chambers

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Equine herpesvirus type 4 (EHV-4) is mildly pathogenic but is a common cause of respiratory disease in horses worldwide. We previously demonstrated that unlike EHV-1, EHV-4 is not a potent inducer of type-I IFN and does not suppress that IFN response, especially during late infection, when compared to EHV-1 infection in equine endothelial cells (EECs). Here, we investigated the impact of EHV-4 infection in EECs on type-I IFN signaling molecules at 3, 6, and 12 hpi. Findings from our study revealed that EHV-4 did not induce nor suppress TLR3 and TLR4 expression in EECs at all the studied time points. EHV-4 was able to induce variable amounts of IRF7 and IRF9 in EECs with no evidence of suppressive effect on these important transcription factors of IFN-α/β induction. Intriguingly, EHV-4 did interfere with the phosphorylation of STAT1/STAT2 at 3 hpi and 6 hpi, less so at 12 hpi. An active EHV-4 viral gene expression was required for the suppressive effect of EHV-4 on STAT1/STAT2 phosphorylation during early infection. One or more early viral genes of EHV-4 are involved in the suppression of STAT1/STAT2 phosphorylation observed during early time points in EHV-4-infected EECs. The inability of EHV-4 to significantly down-regulate key molecules of type-I IFN signaling may be related to the lower severity of pathogenesis when compared with EHV-1. Harnessing this knowledge may prove useful in controlling future outbreaks of the disease.

Original languageEnglish
Article number109971
JournalVeterinary Immunology and Immunopathology
Volume219
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2020

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Elsevier B.V.

Keywords

  • EHV-4
  • Innate immunity
  • STAT1
  • STAT2
  • Type-I interferon

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Immunology
  • General Veterinary

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