Séminaire CIRI (28.06.2023) : Pr. Elina ZUNIGA

Pr. Elina ZUNIGA, Division of Biological Science University of California San Diego, " Type I interferon exhaustion "

Abstract: Interferons are a family of proteins that exert central and vital roles in immunity and antiviral defense. My laboratory discovered that, in response to a viral infection interferons are initially elevated but are subsequently and rapidly silenced despite continuous pathogen replication. We showed that there is an interferon refractory (i.e. exhaustion) phase, during which the infected host fails to elevate interferons in response to the presence of the original virus or an unrelated secondary pathogen, explaining delayed viral control and enhanced susceptibility to opportunistic infections. I will present our recent work on the mechanisms underlying the initial interferon induction and its subsequent, rapid, inhibition after viral infection, and some results that may provide an explanation of why we (counterintuitively) evolved to suppress interferon production during a viral infection