IL-12p40 and IL-18 play pivotal roles in orchestrating the cell-mediated immune response to a poxvirus infection

A strong cell-mediated immune response is critical for controlling viral infections and is regulated by a number of cytokines, including IL-12 and IL-18. Indeed, some viruses have evolved to specifically target these pathways to counter the host immune response. Orthopoxviruses, including ectromelia virus, encode immune evasion molecules that specifically target IL-18 and IFN-γ. We hypothesized that IL-12 and IL-18 are pivotal for induction of IFN-γ production and subsequent generation of an effective host response to ectromelia virus infection. In this study, we demonstrate that absence of both IL-12p40 and IL-18 resulted in increased susceptibility to infection that was associated with skewing of the cytokine response to Th2 and a reduction in NK and CTL responses. The decrease in CTL response correlated with a defect in CD8 ⁺ T cell proliferation and lower numbers of virus-specific CD8 ⁺ T cells. Lack of either IL-12p40 and/or IL-18 was also associated with reduced numbers of CD8⁺ T cells at sites of infection and with an increase in the numbers of splenic T regulatory cells. Taken together, our data indicate that IL-12p40 and IL-18 act in concert and play an important antiviral role through the up-regulation of IFN-γ production and cell-mediated immune responses.