Publications by authors named "Lihai Xia"

Dabry's sturgeon (Acipenser dabryanus), as a living fossil, is considered a critically endangered aquatic animal in China. To date, the immune system of this species remains largely unknown, with limited available sequence information. In addition, increasing incidence of bacterial pathogenic diseases has been reported.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Teleost fish have more complex interferon receptor systems than mammals. In the present study, genes encoding four cytokine receptor family B (CRFBs) and two interferon gamma receptors (IFNGRs) in Dabry's sturgeon (Acipenser dabryanus) were identified by RNA-sequencing. Sequence analysis revealed that the Dabry's sturgeon CRFBs and IFNGRs contained several conserved characteristics features, including signal peptides and a transmembrane domain.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Interferon regulatory factors (IRFs) are crucial regulators in initiating the host innate immune response against pathogen invasions. Dabry's sturgeon (Acipenser dabryanus) is particularly a valuable fish species found in the Yangtze River, China for which there is scarce immunological data. In the present study, we investigated the expression profile of sturgeon IRF genes.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

In mammals, type I interferons (IFNs) are primarily regulated by transcription factors of the IFN regulatory (IRF) family. Interferon regulatory factor 5 (IRF-5) plays pivotal roles in antiviral and inflammatory responses. In the present study, we found that zebrafish (Danio rerio) IRF5 is a key player in the regulation of the expression of type I IFN and its antiviral immune response.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The tripartite motifs (TRIMs) constitute a large family of proteins containing a Really Interesting New Gene (RING) domain, a B-box domain and coiled-coil region followed by different C-terminal domains. TRIM proteins play multiple roles in various cellular processes, including cell growth, differentiation, apoptosis and antiviral immunity. Fish novel large multigene TRIM genes (finTRIM/ftr) appear only in teleosts and play a vital role in antiviral responses.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Tripartite motif (TRIM) proteins are receiving increased research interest because of their roles in a wide range of cellular biological processes in innate immunity. In zebrafish (Danio rerio), the functions of the finTRIM (ftr) family are unclear. In the present study, we investigated the expression pattern of ftr12, ftr51, ftr67, ftr82, ftr83, and ftr84 in zebrafish for the first time.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF