Epstein-Barr Virus miR-BART6-3p Inhibits the RIG-I Pathway

Recognition of viral pathogen-associated molecular patterns by pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) is the first step in the initiation of a host innate immune response. As a PRR, RIG-I detects either viral RNA or replication transcripts. Avoiding RIG-I recognition is a strategy employed by viruses for immune evasion. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infects the majority of the human population worldwide. During the latent infection period there are only a few EBV proteins expressed, whereas EBV-encoded microRNAs, such as BART microRNAs, are highly expressed. BART microRNAs regulate both EBV and the host's gene expression, modulating virus proliferation and the immune response. Here, through gene expression profiling, we found that EBV miR-BART6-3ps inhibited genes of RIG-I-like receptor signaling and the type I interferon (IFN) response. We demonstrated that miR-BART6-3p rather than other BARTs specifically suppressed RIG-I-like receptor signaling-mediated IFN-β production. RNA-seq was used to analyze the global transcriptome change upon EBV infection and miR-BART6-3p mimics transfection, which revealed that EBV infection-triggered immune response signaling can be repressed by miR-BART6-3p overexpression. Furthermore, miR-BART6-3p inhibited the EBV-triggered IFN-β response and facilitated EBV infection through targeting the 3′UTR of RIG-I mRNA. These findings provide new insights into the mechanism underlying the strategies employed by EBV to evade immune surveillance.