Interferon Regulatory Factor 1 and Type I Interferon Cooperate To Control Acute Gammaherpesvirus Infection

Gammaherpesviruses are ubiquitous pathogens that establish lifelong infection in >95% of adults worldwide and are associated with a variety of malignancies. Coevolution of gammaherpesviruses with their hosts has resulted in an intricate relationship between the virus and the host immune system, and perturbation of the virus-host balance results in pathology. Interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF-1) is a tumor suppressor that is also involved in the regulation of innate and adaptive immune responses. Here, we show that type I interferon (IFN) and IRF-1 cooperate to control acute gammaherpesvirus infection. Specifically, we demonstrate that a combination of IRF-1 and type I IFN signaling ensures host survival during acute gammaherpesvirus infection and supports IFN gamma-mediated suppression of viral replication. Thus, our studies reveal an intriguing cross talk between IRF-1 and type I and II IFNs in the induction of the antiviral state during acute gammaherpesvirus infection.

Gammaherpesviruses establish chronic infection in a majority of adults, and this long-term infection is associated with virus-driven development of a range of malignancies. In contrast, a brief period of active gammaherpesvirus replication during acute infection of a naive host is subclinical in most individuals. Here, we discovered that a combination of type I interferon (IFN) signaling and interferon regulatory factor 1 (IRF-1) expression is required to ensure survival of a gammaherpesvirus-infected host past the first 8 days of infection. Specifically, both type I IFN receptor and IRF-1 expression potentiated antiviral effects of type II IFN to restrict gammaherpesvirus replication in vivo, in the lungs, and in vitro, in primary macrophage cultures.