Kynurenine-3-monooxygenase (KMO) broadly inhibits viral infections via triggering NMDAR/Ca2+ influx and CaMKII/ IRF3-mediated IFN-β production

作者：Jin Zhao, Jiaoshan Chen, Congcong Wang, Yajie Liu, Minchao Li, Yanjun Li, Ruiting Li, Zirong Han, Junjian Wang, Ling Chen, Yuelong Shu, Genhong Cheng, Caijun Sun · 发表于：PLoS Pathogens · 年份：2022 · DOI：10.1371/journal.ppat.1010366 · 被引用次数：34 · 研究领域：Tryptophan and brain disorders、Stress Responses and Cortisol、Gut microbiota and health

Tryptophan (Trp) metabolism through the kynurenine pathway (KP) is well known to play a critical function in cancer, autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases. However, its role in host-pathogen interactions has not been characterized yet. Herein, we identified that kynurenine-3-monooxygenase (KMO), a key rate-limiting enzyme in the KP, and quinolinic acid (QUIN), a key enzymatic product of KMO enzyme, exerted a novel antiviral function against a broad range of viruses. Mechanistically, QUIN induced the production of type I interferon (IFN-I) via activating the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) and Ca2+ influx to activate Calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII)/interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3). Importantly, QUIN treatment effectively inhibited viral infections and alleviated disease progression in mice. Furthermore, kmo-/- mice were vulnerable to pathogenic viral challenge with severe clinical symptoms. Collectively, our results demonstrated that KMO and its enzymatic product QUIN were potential therapeutics against emerging pathogenic viruses.