Immunomodulation by Enteric Viruses

Abstract

Enteric viruses display intricate adaptations to the host mucosal immune system to successfully reproduce in the gastrointestinal tract and cause maladies ranging from gastroenteritis to life-threatening disease upon extraintestinal dissemination. However, many viral infections are asymptomatic, and their presence in the gut is associated with an altered immune landscape that can be beneficial or adverse in certain contexts. Genetic variation in the host and environmental factors including the bacterial microbiota influence how the immune system responds to infections in a remarkably viral strain–specific manner. This immune response, in turn, determines whether a given virus establishes acute versus chronic infection, which may have long-lasting consequences such as susceptibility to inflammatory disease. In this review, we summarize our current understanding of the mechanisms involved in the interaction between enteric viruses and the immune system that underlie the impact of these ubiquitous infectious agents on our health.