Use of IRF-3 and/or IRF-7 Knockout Mice To Study Viral Pathogenesis: Lessons from a Murine Retrovirus-Induced AIDS Model

Abstract

Interferon regulatory factor (IRF) regulation of the type I interferon response has not been extensively explored in murine retroviral infections. IRF-3 −/− and select IRF-3/7 −/− mice were resistant to LP-BM5-induced pathogenesis. However, further analyses strongly suggested that resistance could be attributed to strain 129-specific contamination of the known retrovirus resistance gene Fv1 . Therefore, caution should be taken when interpreting phenotypes observed in these knockout mice, as strain 129-derived genetic polymorphisms may explain observed differences.