AHR is a Zika virus host factor and a candidate target for antiviral therapy.

ABSTRACT: Zika virus (ZIKV) is a flavivirus linked to multiple birth defects including microcephaly, known as congenital ZIKV syndrome. The identification of host factors involved in ZIKV replication may guide efficacious therapeutic interventions. In genome-wide transcriptional studies, we found that ZIKV infection triggers aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) activation. Specifically, ZIKV infection induces kynurenine (Kyn) production, which activates AHR, limiting the production of type I interferons (IFN-I) involved in antiviral immunity. Moreover, ZIKV-triggered AHR activation suppresses intrinsic immunity driven by the promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein, which limits ZIKV replication. AHR inhibition suppressed the replication of multiple ZIKV strains in vitro and also suppressed replication of th

SUBMITTER: Giovannoni F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7897397 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature