Transmissible Gastroenteritis Virus Papain-Like Protease 1 Antagonizes Production of Interferon-β through Its Deubiquitinase Activity

Coronaviruses (CoVs), such as human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63), severe acute respiratory syndrome CoV (SARS-CoV), murine hepatitis virus (MHV), porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV), encode papain-like (PL) proteases that inhibit Sendai virus- (SeV-) induced interferon (IFN-β) production. Recently, the crystal structure of transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV) PL1 has been solved, which was similar to that of SARS-CoV PL2pro, which may antagonize host innate immunity. However, very little is known about whether TGEV PL1 can antagonize host innate immune response. Here, we presented evidence that TGEV PL1 encoded by the replicase gene could suppress the IFN-β expression and inhibit the nuclear translocation of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3). The ability to antagonize IFN-β production was dependent on the intact catalytic activity of PL1. Furthermore, TGEV PL1 exerted deubiquitinase (DUB) activity which strongly inhibited the retinoic acid-induced gene I- (RIG-1-) and stimulator of interferon gene- (STING-) dependent IFN expression. Our data collectively suggest that TGEV PL1 can inhibit the IFN-β expression and interfere with RIG-1- and STING-mediated signaling through a viral DUB activity. Our study has yielded strong evidence for the TGEV PL1 mechanisms that counteract the host innate immunity.