Genome-Wide Gene Expression Analysis Identifies the Proto-oncogene Tyrosine-Protein Kinase Src as a Crucial Virulence Determinant of Infectious Laryngotracheitis Virus in Chicken Cells

Li, Hai; Wang, Fengjie; Han, Zongxi; Gao, Qi; Li, Huixin; Shao, Yuhao; Sun, Nana; Liu, Shengwang

In addition to controlling ILTV infections by establishing cellextrinsic barriers that are mediated by anti-ILTV innate and cellmediated immune responses (15) (16) (17) , the manipulation of the cell-intrinsic barrier that is mediated by host factors that regulate the interaction between ILTV and host cells could be another promising option. Many studies have investigated herpesvirushost interactions in humans and mice; however, little is known about these interactions in chickens. Lee et al. explored the molecular events induced by ILTV infection in host cells using publicly available high-throughput data on host transcription profiles in chicken embryo lung cells infected with a virulent ILTV strain (18) . A bioinformatic analysis revealed that several genes and pathways are significantly altered by ILTV infection; these findings were validated using quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays. Their study cast the first light on the molecular nature of the host response to ILTV infection. However, the underlying molecular basis of the host response remains largely unclear, and additional studies are urgently needed to address this issue.