The recent outbreak of enterovirus 71 (EV71) infected millions of children and caused over 1,000 deaths. To date, neither an effective vaccine nor antiviral treatment is available for EV71 infection. Interferons (IFNs) have been successfully applied to treat patients with hepatitis B and C viral infections for decades but have failed to treat EV71 infections. Here, we provide the evidence that EV71 antagonizes type I IFN signaling by reducing the level of interferon receptor 1 (IFNAR1). We show that the host cells could sense EV71 infection and stimulate IFN-␤ production. However, the induction of downstream IFN-stimulated genes is inhibited by EV71. Also, only a slight interferon response and antiviral effects could be detected in cells treated with recombinant type I IFNs after EV71 infection. Further studies reveal that EV71 blocks the IFN-mediated phosphorylation of STAT1, STAT2, Jak1, and Tyk2 by reducing IFNAR1. Finally, we identified the 2A protease encoded by EV71 as an antagonist of IFNs and show that the protease activity is required for reducing IFNAR1 levels. Taken together, our study for the first time uncovers a mechanism used by EV71 to antagonize type I IFN signaling and provides new targets for future antiviral strategies. E nterovirus 71 (EV71) is a typical positive-strand RNA virus which belongs to the Picornaviridae family (44). The genome of EV71 is approximately 7.5 kb in length and contains a single open reading frame encoding a polyprotein precursor. This polyprotein is cleaved by two viral proteases, 2Apro and 3C pro , to form four structural proteins (VP1, VP2, VP3, and VP4) and seven nonstructural proteins (2A, 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, 3C, and 3D) (39). EV71 infection was a major cause of outbreaks of hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD) in infants and young children (19,22). As a typical neurotropic virus, EV71 has a propensity to cause neurological disease during acute infection and may lead to permanent paralysis and even death (1,42,45). The outbreaks and severity of EV71 infection have been frequently reported worldwide (60), and recently EV71 has become a major threat to public health in China (56). The Chinese government reported that there were ϳ1,770,000 cases of HFMD and herpangina with over 900 deaths in 2010 (http://www.moh.gov.cn/publicfiles/business/htmlfiles/zwgkzt /pyq/list.htm). However, to date, no effective vaccine or therapy can be applied to prevent or treat EV71 infection.Type I interferon (IFN), as the first line of host immune response, is critical in mediating antiviral defense. The host recognizes viral invasion and activates the type I IFN response through the recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by patternrecognition receptors (PRRs) (61). Binding with the corresponding receptors, IFN receptor 1 (IFNAR1) and IFNAR2 (11, 50), the secreted IFNs activate the Janus kinases Jak1 and Tyk2 and then phosphorylate signal transducers and activators of transcription STAT1 and STAT2 (23). The phosphorylated STAT1 and STAT2 form heterodimers and bind with...

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The Influenza A virus is a great threat for human health, while various subtypes of the virus made it difficult to develop drugs. With the development of state-of-art computational chemistry, computational molecular docking could serve as a virtual screen of potential leading compound. In this study, we performed molecular docking for influenza A H1N1 (A/PR/8/34) with small molecules such as quercetin and chlorogenic acid, which were derived from traditional Chinese medicine. The results showed that these small molecules have strong binding abilities with neuraminidase from H1N1 (A/PR/8/34). Further details showed that the structural features of the molecules might be helpful for further drug design and development. The experiments in vitro, in vivo have validated the anti-influenza effect of quercetin and chlorogenic acid, which indicating comparable protection effects as zanamivir. Taken together, it was proposed that chlorogenic acid and quercetin could be employed as the effective lead compounds for anti-influenza A H1N1.

Background Diet is regarded as one of the most important environmental factors associated with colorectal cancer (CRC) risk. A recent report comprehensively concluded that total energy intake does not have a simple relationship with CRC risk, and that the data were inconsistent for carbohydrate, cholesterol and protein. The objective of this study was to identify the associations of CRC risk with dietary intakes of total energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, fiber, and alcohol using data from a large case-control study conducted in Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) and Ontario (ON), Canada. Methods Incident colorectal cancer cases (n = 1760) were identified from population-based cancer registries in the provinces of ON (1997-2000) and NL (1999-2003). Controls (n = 2481) were a random sample of residents in each province, aged 20-74 years. Family history questionnaire (FHQ), personal history questionnaire (PHQ), and food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) were used to collect study data. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the association of intakes of total energy, macronutrients and alcohol with CRC risk. Results Total energy intake was associated with higher risk of CRC (OR: 1.56; 95% CI: 1.21-2.01, p -trend = 0.02, 5 th versus 1 st quintile), whereas inverse associations emerged for intakes of protein (OR: 0.85, 95%CI: 0.69-1.00, p -trend = 0.06, 5 th versus 1 st quintile), carbohydrate (OR: 0.81, 95%CI: 0.63-1.00, p -trend = 0.05, 5 th versus 1 st quintile) and total dietary fiber (OR: 0.84, 95% CI:0.67-0.99, p -trend = 0.04, 5 th versus 1 st quintile). Total fat, alcohol, saturated fatty acids, monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and cholesterol were not associated with CRC risk. Conclusion This study provides further evidence that high energy intake may increase risk of incident CRC, whereas diets high in protein, fiber, and carbohydrate may reduce the risk of the disease.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of severe liver disease. Interferon (IFN)/ribavirin treatment remains the standard therapeutic regimen for HCV infection in most countries. IFN-stimulated genes are believed to contribute to antiviral effects. However, emerging evidence suggests that microRNAs (miRNAs), a class of noncoding small RNAs, are involved in the control of viral infection. Here, we systematically profiled the hepatocyte expression of a set of 750 miRNAs in response to alpha interferon (IFN-␣) and interleukin-28B (IL-28B) treatments. The anti-HCV activity of differentially expressed miRNAs was evaluated using cell culture-derived HCV in vitro. The results demonstrate that let-7b had a significant anti-HCV effect by inhibiting HCV replication and viral protein translation in human hepatoma cells. In particular, we show that the inhibition of let-7b attenuated the anti-HCV effects of IFN-␣ and IL-28B. Furthermore, we show that the host factor insulin-like growth factor 2 mRNA-binding protein 1 (IGF2BP1) is a target of let-7b. IGF2BP1 was required for HCV replication, and its expression was downregulated by IFN-␣ and IL-28B. Deletion of the wild-type seed region of let-7b abolished its antiviral activity. Finally, we demonstrate that other let-7 family miRNAs were able to inhibit HCV and to suppress IGF2BP1 expression. In conclusion, we provide an example of a host miRNA regulated by type I and type III IFNs that inhibits HCV replication and infectivity by targeting host targets. These results highlight the important role of miRNAs in the host antiviral immune response and provide a novel candidate for anti-HCV therapy.

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