Abortively Infected Astrocytes Appear To Represent the Main Source of Interferon Beta in the Virus-Infected Brain.

ABSTRACT:

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Interferon beta (IFN-β) is a key component of cellular innate immunity in mammals, and it constitutes the first line of defense during viral infection. Studies with cultured cells previously showed that almost all nucleated cells are able to produce IFN-β to various extents, but information about the in vivo sources of IFN-β remains incomplete. By applying immunohistochemistry and employing conditional-reporter mice that express firefly luciferase under the control of the IFN-β promoter in either all or only distinct cell types, we found that astrocytes are the main producers of IFN-β after infection of the brain with diverse neurotropic viruses, including rabies virus, Theiler's murine encephalomyelitis virus, and vesicular stomatitis virus. Analysis of a panel of knock

SUBMITTER: Pfefferkorn C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4733997 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature