The mechanism of cytokine storm triggered by H7N9 virus infection revealed

On July 30, Academician Chen Hualan of the Harbin Institute of Veterinary Medicine of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and Academician Shao Feng of the Beijing Institute of Life Sciences jointly published an online publication titled "H7N9 influenza virus activates gasdermin E-mediated lung epithelial cell pyrolysis in the National Science Review".

The H7N9 influenza virus emerged in China in 2013, causing more than 1,560 people to be infected, with a fatality rate close to 40%

The study found that the effective replication of the H7N9 virus in the lungs of mice activates Gasdermin E-mediated pyrolysis of alveolar epithelial cells, and the contents of the pyrostatic cells then trigger a cytokine storm

The activation of Gasdermin E is the key unique mechanism by which the H7N9 virus induces a lung cytokine storm and causes the death of the infected person

Currently, influenza A viruses are widely spread in nature and continue to pose challenges to human health