title: Activation of Vago by interferon regulatory factor (IRF) suggests an interferon system-like antiviral mechanism in shrimp.
abstract: There is a debate on whether invertebrates possess an antiviral immunity similar to the interferon (IFN) system of vertebrates. The Vago gene from arthropods encodes a viral-activated secreted peptide that restricts virus infection through activating the JAK-STAT pathway and is considered to be a cytokine functionally similar to IFN. In this study, the first crustacean IFN regulatory factor (IRF)-like gene was identified in Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. The L. vannamei IRF showed similar protein nature to mammalian IRFs and could be activated during virus infection. As a transcriptional regulatory factor, L. vannamei IRF could activate the IFN-stimulated response element (ISRE)-containing promoter to regulate the expression of mammalian type I IFNs and initiate an antiviral state in mammalian cells. More importantly, IRF could bind the 5'-untranslated region of L. vannamei Vago4 gene and activate its transcription, suggesting that shrimp Vago may be induced in a similar manner to that of IFNs and supporting the opinion that Vago might function as an IFN-like molecule in invertebrates. These suggested that shrimp might possess an IRF-Vago-JAK/STAT regulatory axis, which is similar to the IRF-IFN-JAK/STAT axis of vertebrates, indicating that invertebrates might possess an IFN system-like antiviral mechanism.
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Chaozheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Haoyang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yixiao
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yonggui
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Shao-Ping
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Weng
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xiaopeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Aquatic Product Safety/State Key Laboratory for Biocontrol, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|Institute of Aquatic Economic Animals and Guangdong Provice Key Laboratory for Aquatic Economic Animals, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, P.R. China.|South China Sea Resource Exploitation and Protection Collaborative Innovation Center (SCS-REPIC), Guangzhou, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jianguo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019295:Computational Biology / Q000379:methods; D033364:Decapoda / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D060467:Disease Resistance; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D055785:Gene Knockdown Techniques; D050835:Interferon Regulatory Factors / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D007372:Interferons / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D011401:Promoter Regions, Genetic; D055503:Protein Multimerization
chemical_list: D050835:Interferon Regulatory Factors; D007372:Interferons