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Vaccinia Virus Protein C6: A Multifunctional Interferon Antagonist

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Infectious Diseases and Nanomedicine III

Part of the book series: Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology ((AEMB,volume 1052))

Abstract

Vaccinia virus (VACV) is the prototypic member of the Orthopoxvirus genus of the Poxviridae. It is also the live vaccine that was used to eradicate smallpox. Like other poxviruses, VACV replicates in the cytoplasm and has a large double-stranded (ds)DNA genome and a complex virion. Approximately, half of the VACV genes are nonessential for virus replication in cell culture but encode a remarkable array of immunomodulators that antagonise the innate immune response to virus infection. This short review concerns one such protein, C6, that is a multifunctional inhibitor of interferon. C6 can both diminish the production of interferon and inhibit interferon-induced signalling and thereby the expression of interferon-stimulated genes.

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Acknowledgements

Work in the author’s laboratory has been supported by grants from the UK Medical Research Council, the Lister Institute, and the Wellcome Trust. GLS is a Wellcome Trust Principal Research Fellow.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, University of Cambridge, Tennis Court Road, Cambridge, CB2 1QP, UK

    Geoffrey L. Smith

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  1. Geoffrey L. Smith
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Correspondence to Geoffrey L. Smith .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Research Center for Applied Science and Technology (RECAST), Tribhuvan University, Kathmandu, Nepal

    Rameshwar Adhikari

  2. Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Genetics, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas, USA

    Santosh Thapa

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Smith, G.L. (2018). Vaccinia Virus Protein C6: A Multifunctional Interferon Antagonist. In: Adhikari, R., Thapa, S. (eds) Infectious Diseases and Nanomedicine III. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 1052. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-7572-8_1

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