Long-distance interferon signaling within the brain blocks virus spread.

ABSTRACT:

Unlabelled

Serious permanent neurological or psychiatric dysfunction may result from virus infections in the central nervous system (CNS). Olfactory sensory neurons are in direct contact with the external environment, making them susceptible to infection by viruses that can enter the brain via the olfactory nerve. The rarity of full brain viral infections raises the important question of whether unique immune defense mechanisms protect the brain. Here we show that both RNA (vesicular stomatitis virus [VSV]) and DNA (cytomegalovirus [CMV]) virus inoculations of the nasal mucosa leading to olfactory bulb (OB) infection activate long-distance signaling that upregulates antiviral interferon (IFN)-stimulated gene (ISG) expression in uninfected remote regions of the brain. This signaling

SUBMITTER: van den Pol AN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3993528 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature