Viral diseases pose a substantial threat to public health and result in significant economic loss globally. Viruses evolve in order to evade the host immunity and continue replicating, mostly through subversion and suppression of the innate and adaptive immune pathways. Viral evasion strategies not only constitute a substantial challenge to host immunity by disrupting natural defence mechanisms against infection but may also potentially interfere with the neutralizing antibody response when conventional anti-viral strategies, such as inactivated vaccines and single neutralizing antibody-based therapies, are used.
To develop effective antiviral prophylactics and therapeutics, efforts have been made to counteract the effects of viral immune evasion. Viral vaccines can be developed to induce non-strain-specific immune protection while also broadening the target spectrum for improved efficacy. Emerging vaccination technologies, such as mRNA vaccines, nanoparticles, and complementation of vaccines with novel adjuvants have been found to induce innate immunity and protective cell-mediated immune responses. In recent years, new strategies for improving cross-protection among strains have been developed by engineering antigenic epitopes and post-translational modifications in viruses with high mutation rates, such as influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, research into virus pathogenesis and mechanisms for exploitation of host immunity from different perspectives (attachment, replication, antigen modification/presentation, immunity evasion, and manipulating host response) could facilitate a better understanding of the multifaceted nature of virus-host interactions and pave the way for the development of new and universal antiviral therapeutics.
In this Research Topic, we will incorporate the most recent findings and progress on novel strategies against viral immune evasion. Focuses include but are not limited to:
- Universal Vaccines
- Innate immunity enhancers
- Antibody or peptide-based virus inhibitors with a low risk of resistance
- The mechanism utilized by viruses to counteract host antiviral innate immune responses
Types of manuscripts: all perspective articles include but are not limited to Original Research Article, Review, Mini review, Hypothesis & Theory, etc.
Viral diseases pose a substantial threat to public health and result in significant economic loss globally. Viruses evolve in order to evade the host immunity and continue replicating, mostly through subversion and suppression of the innate and adaptive immune pathways. Viral evasion strategies not only constitute a substantial challenge to host immunity by disrupting natural defence mechanisms against infection but may also potentially interfere with the neutralizing antibody response when conventional anti-viral strategies, such as inactivated vaccines and single neutralizing antibody-based therapies, are used.
To develop effective antiviral prophylactics and therapeutics, efforts have been made to counteract the effects of viral immune evasion. Viral vaccines can be developed to induce non-strain-specific immune protection while also broadening the target spectrum for improved efficacy. Emerging vaccination technologies, such as mRNA vaccines, nanoparticles, and complementation of vaccines with novel adjuvants have been found to induce innate immunity and protective cell-mediated immune responses. In recent years, new strategies for improving cross-protection among strains have been developed by engineering antigenic epitopes and post-translational modifications in viruses with high mutation rates, such as influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2. Meanwhile, research into virus pathogenesis and mechanisms for exploitation of host immunity from different perspectives (attachment, replication, antigen modification/presentation, immunity evasion, and manipulating host response) could facilitate a better understanding of the multifaceted nature of virus-host interactions and pave the way for the development of new and universal antiviral therapeutics.
In this Research Topic, we will incorporate the most recent findings and progress on novel strategies against viral immune evasion. Focuses include but are not limited to:
- Universal Vaccines
- Innate immunity enhancers
- Antibody or peptide-based virus inhibitors with a low risk of resistance
- The mechanism utilized by viruses to counteract host antiviral innate immune responses
Types of manuscripts: all perspective articles include but are not limited to Original Research Article, Review, Mini review, Hypothesis & Theory, etc.