Virokine

A virokine is a protein encoded by certain viruses that acts as a competitive inhibitor of a host cytokines. As cytokines act as an essential part of a hosts immune system, virokines are used by viruses for immunomodulation and subverting host immune responses.

The word "virokine" was originally coined by Dr. Bernard Moss. It is used to designate viral proteins that interfere with immune response by reducing cytokine levels or effectiveness. They may do so by suppressing cytokine secretion, competing for cytokine receptors, interfering with cytokine signalling pathways, or otherwise antagonizing cytokines of the host organism. Many virokines are similar to host cytokines and may have been acquired by gene transfer from the host and subsequently modified.

Further reading

• Girish J. Kotwal (1999). "Virokines: mediators of virus-host interaction and future immunomodulators in medicine" (PDF). Archivum Immunologiae et Therapiae Experimentalis (Warsz) 47 (3): 135–138. PMID 10470439. http://www.aite.wroclaw.pl/journals/AITEFullText/47z302.pdf. 
• Smith S.A. and Kotwal G.J. (May 2001). "Virokines: novel immunomodulatory agents". Expert Opinion on Biological Therapy 1 (3): 343–357. doi:10.1517/14712598.1.3.343. PMID 11727510. 
• MARIAM KLOUCHE, GIUSEPPE CARRUBA, LUIGI CASTAGNETTA, AND STEFAN ROSE-JOHN (December 2004). "Virokines in the Pathogenesis of Cancer: Focus on Human Herpesvirus". Annals of the. New York Academy of Sciences (New York Academy of Sciences) 1028: 329–339. doi:10.1196/annals.1322.038. PMID 15650258.