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Published on: March 24, 2015
Lipid droplet dynamics control type I interferon responses and viperin expression to suppress viral replication
Zhenbang Zhu1, Xinyu Zhang1, Wenqiang Wang1
1Jiangsu Co-innovation Center for Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Diseases and Zoonoses, College of Veterinary Medicine, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, PR China; Jiangsu Interdisciplinary Center for Zoonoses and Biosafety, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, PR China; Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Zoonosis, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, PR China.
None:
Viral infection triggers innate immune responses that are essential for restricting early pathogen replication. Lipid droplets (LDs), traditionally recognized as neutral lipid storage organelles, have recently emerged as regulators of immune signaling. In this study, we investigated the modulatory role of LDs in antiviral immunity using porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and pseudorabies virus (PRV) as models. We demonstrated that oleic acid (OA)-induced LD accumulation significantly enhanced type I interferon (IFN) responses and suppressed viral replication. Mechanistically, increased LD content potentiated the activation of both the RIG-I/MDA5 and cGAS-STING signaling pathways. Moreover, LD accumulation led to upregulation of viperin, a key interferon-inducible antiviral protein. Pharmacological inhibition of LD formation or DGAT2 activity reduced viperin expression and impaired antiviral efficacy, indicating that LD dynamics are functionally linked to the antiviral state. Collectively, our findings uncover an important role of LDs in coordinating innate immune signaling and viperin-mediated antiviral defense, positioning LDs as potential therapeutic targets for enhancing host immunity against viral infections.
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