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Pestiviruses: how to outmaneuver your hosts
Ernst Peterhans1, Matthias Schweizer
1Institute of Veterinary Virology, Vetsuisse Faculty University of Bern, Laenggass-Str. 122, P.O. Box 8466, CH-3001 Bern, Switzerland. ernst.peterhans@ivv.unibe.ch
Veterinary Microbiology
|October 23, 2009
Summary
Pestiviruses, like bovine viral diarrhea virus, exhibit unique immune evasion strategies. Persistent infections establish immunotolerance and evade innate immunity without hindering host defenses against other viruses.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Immunology
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- Pestiviruses display significant heterogeneity in genetics, hosts, and virulence.
- These viruses are globally distributed in domestic and wild animals, indicating high adaptability.
- Pestiviruses can establish either transient or persistent infections in their hosts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore pestivirus persistence strategies, focusing on virulence, transmission, and host immune interactions.
- To investigate the unique immunotolerance mechanism employed by bovine viral diarrhea virus during persistent infection.
- To examine how bovine viral diarrhea virus evades both adaptive and innate immune responses.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of pestivirus persistence strategies in host populations.
- Focus on the interplay between viral virulence, attenuation, and transmission dynamics.
- In vitro investigations using cultured cells to study immune evasion mechanisms, including interferon response.
Main Results:
- Persistent pestivirus infection in cattle is characterized by immunotolerance, a unique adaptive immune evasion strategy.
- Bovine viral diarrhea virus actively evades innate immunity by failing to induce type-I interferon.
- During persistent infection, bovine viral diarrhea virus is resistant to interferon but does not inhibit its action against other viruses.
Conclusions:
- Pestiviruses employ sophisticated strategies to evade host immune responses, facilitating their success.
- The ability of bovine viral diarrhea virus to discriminate between 'self' and 'non-self' immune responses may contribute to host health.
- This immune evasion mechanism may enhance pestivirus transmission by maintaining host viability and reducing overall immune interference.
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