Interferon-induced immune signatures are associated with suppression of HEV infection in porcine cell culture models

JAK-inhibition enhanced viral replication and suppressed ISG expression, highlighting the importance of IFN signaling in antiviral defense. Transcriptional profiling revealed a global modulation of host responses upon HEV infection, including pathways linked to immunity, inflammation, and metabolism. Porcine cell lines were permissive to HEV infection and treatment with recombinant porcine IFN-α subtypes induced a robust ISG response and effectively inhibited HEV replication in a dose-dependent manner.

These findings establish porcine hepatocytes and cell lines as valuable tools to study HEV-host interactions, demonstrating the critical role of IFN-mediated intrinsic immunity in HEV restriction and highlighting subtype-specific antiviral effects of porcine IFN-α.