Viral immunosuppression: Not just a game of hide and go seek

When facing an immune response, viruses can either attempt to elude them or confront them. Dendritic cells (DCs) play a pivotal role in bringing forth the immune response by stimulating T cells. In the March 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Noemi Sevilla and colleagues from the Scripps Research Institute demonstrate that a lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) strain can suppress immune responses by targeting both the development and activation of DCs. Ironically, the release of type I interferon in response to LCMV infection, which normally contributes to the immune response, actually helped block DC development. This new mechanism provides us with a new perspective regarding therapeutic strategies associated with immunosuppression.

In an accompanying commentary, Marco Colonna from Washington University discusses the paradoxical role of type 1 interferon in the immune suppression following LCMV infection and the novel way in which this virus not only eludes specific immune surveillance, but actively suppresses the immune response.

TITLE: Viral targeting of hematopoietic progenitors and inhibition of DC maturation as a dual strategy for immune subversion

AUTHOR CONTACT:
Noemi Sevilla
Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Phone: 34-91-397-8477
Fax: 34-91-397-4799
E-mail: nsevilla@cbm.uam.eds

View the PDF of this article at: https://www.the-jci.org/press/20243.pdf

ACCOMPANYING COMMENTARY: Viral immunosuppression: disabling the guards

AUTHOR CONTACT:
Marco Colonna
Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
Phone: 314-362-0367
Fax: 314-362-4096
E-mail: mcolonna@pathology.wustl.edu

View the PDF of this commentary at: https://www.the-jci.org/press/21166.pdf

---

---