Oral epithelial cells (OEC) represent the first site of host interaction with viruses that infect the body through the oral route; however, their innate antiviral defense mechanisms yet to be defined. Previous studies have determined that OEC express pathogen‐, damage‐, or danger‐associated molecular patterns (PAMPs or DAMPs), but their expression of key antiviral innate immune mediators, including type I interferons (type I IFN) and interferon‐stimulated genes (ISGs) has not been studied extensively. We used the oral keratinocyte cell line, OKF6/TERT1, in the presence and absence of the viral mimics poly(I:C) and unmethylated CpG DNA, to define the expression of type I IFN and ISGs. We identified the basal expression of novel type I IFN genes IFNE and IFNK, while IFNB1 was induced by viral mimics, through the nuclear translocation of IRF3. Numerous ISGs were expressed at basal levels in OEC, with an apparent correlation between high expression and antiviral activity at the earlier stages of viral infection. Stimulation of OECs with poly(I:C) led to selective induction of ISGs, including MX1, BST2, PML, RSAD2, ISG15, and ZC3HAV1. Together, our results demonstrate that OECs exhibit a robust innate antiviral immune defense profile, which is primed to address a wide variety of pathogenic viruses that are transmitted orally.

中文翻译：

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I型干扰素和干扰素刺激的口腔上皮细胞基因表达。

口腔上皮细胞 (OEC) 是宿主与通过口腔途径感染人体的病毒相互作用的第一个部位；然而，它们与生俱来的抗病毒防御机制尚待确定。以前的研究已经确定，OEC 表达病原体、损伤或危险相关分子模式（PAMP 或 DAMP），但它们表达关键的抗病毒先天免疫介质，包括 I 型干扰素（I 型 IFN）和干扰素刺激基因。 ISG) 尚未得到广泛研究。我们使用口腔角质形成细胞系 OKF6/TERT1，在存在和不存在病毒模拟物 poly(I:C) 和未甲基化 CpG DNA 的情况下，确定 I 型 IFN 和 ISG 的表达。我们确定了新型 I 型 IFN 基因 IFNE 和 IFNK 的基础表达，而 IFNB1 是由病毒模拟物通过 IRF3 的核转位诱导的。许多 ISG 在 OEC 中以基础水平表达，在病毒感染的早期阶段，高表达与抗病毒活性之间存在明显的相关性。用 poly(I:C) 刺激 OEC 导致选择性诱导 ISG，包括MX1、BST2、PML、RSAD2、ISG15和ZC3HAV1。总之，我们的研究结果表明，OEC 表现出强大的先天抗病毒免疫防御特性，可用于解决经口传播的多种致病病毒。