Interferon Alpha, but Not Interferon Beta, Acts Early To Control Chronic Chikungunya Virus Pathogenesis.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an arthritogenic alphavirus that causes both debilitating acute and chronic disease. Previous work has shown that type I interferons (IFNs) play a critical role in limiting CHIKV pathogenesis and that interferon alpha (IFN-α) and interferon beta (IFN-β) control acute CHIKV infection by distinct mechanisms. However, the role of type I IFNs, especially specific subtypes, during chronic CHIKV disease is unclear.

Distinct Roles of Interferon Alpha and Beta in Controlling Chikungunya Virus Replication and Modulating Neutrophil-Mediated Inflammation.

Type I interferons (IFNs) are key mediators of the innate immune response. Although members of this family of cytokines signal through a single shared receptor, biochemical and functional variation exists in response to different IFN subtypes. While previous work has demonstrated that type I IFNs are essential to control infection by chikungunya virus (CHIKV), a globally emerging alphavirus, the contributions of individual IFN subtypes remain undefined.

Dermal and muscle fibroblasts and skeletal myofibers survive chikungunya virus infection and harbor persistent RNA.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an arthritogenic alphavirus that acutely causes fever as well as severe joint and muscle pain. Chronic musculoskeletal pain persists in a substantial fraction of patients for months to years after the initial infection, yet we still have a poor understanding of what promotes chronic disease. While replicating virus has not been detected in joint-associated tissues of patients with persistent arthritis nor in various animal models at convalescent time points, viral RNA is detected months after acute infection.

Therapy with CTLA4-Ig and an antiviral monoclonal antibody controls chikungunya virus arthritis.

In 2013, chikungunya virus (CHIKV) transmission was documented in the Western Hemisphere, and the virus has since spread throughout the Americas with more than 1.8 million people infected in more than 40 countries. CHIKV targets the joints, resulting in symmetric polyarthritis that clinically mimics rheumatoid arthritis and can endure for months to years.