Hnf4α integrates AIF and caspase 3/9 signaling to restrict single and coinfecting pathogens in teleosts.

ABSTRACT: Hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha (Hnf4α), a conserved nuclear receptor central to vertebrate liver development and metabolic regulation, emerges here as a pivotal immune regulator in teleosts against complex infectious threats. While its metabolic roles are well-established, Hnf4α's function in bacterial infection, viral infection, and bacterial-viral coinfection-major challenges in global aquaculture-remained uncharacterized. This study reveals that teleost Hnf4α acts as a dual-functional immune checkpoint, essential for combating Aeromonas salmonicida, grass carp reovirus (GCRV), and their coinfection. In in vivo zebrafish models, hnf4α-deficient larvae showed profound susceptibility, with survival rates reduced by 13.33-40% during infections, whereas gcHnf4α overexpression enhanced lar

SUBMITTER: Yan D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12425335 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature