Immune escape mechanisms of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus

SFTSV belongs to the genus Bandavirus, family Phenuiviridae of the order Bunyavirales. SFTS is an emerging infectious disease that was first identified in China in 2009, and has been reported in many other countries and regions including Japan. It is mainly transmitted though the tick bite. Clinical symptoms of SFTS are persistent of high fever, thrombocytopenia, leukopenia and mortality rate is up to 30%. SFTSV has developed several mechanisms to escape host immune response. Example of the evasion mechanism of SFTSV from innate immunity include the impairment of mononuclear cells and dendritic cells, a decrease in number of NK cell, inhibition of the IFN signaling pathway, and the regulation of autophagy. Evasion from adaptive immunity involves a decrease in T cells, inhibition of antibody secretion and B cell maturation. Understanding the mechanism of immune evasion by SFTSV is essential for the development of vaccines and immunotherapy.
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