WAS EXPOSURE TO DIRECTLY ANTIVIRAL CYTOKINES DURING PRIMARY INFECTIONAN IMPORTANT SELECTIVE PRESSURE IN THE EVOLUTION OF UNIQUE IMMUNE EVASION STRATEGIES BY VIRUSES

Different virus families are characterized by various immune evasion s trategies. These viruses have co-evolved with an increasingly sophisti cated mammalian immune system which has continually placed pressure on their continued survival. This paper proposes that exposure to direct ly antiviral cytokines, namely TNF and members of the IFN family, duri ng inflammatory and early immune responses, exerted particularly stron g selective pressures on viruses, and has had a critical influence on the development of viral immune evasion strategies and pathogenesis. I n the context of antiviral cytokine activity, this report concentrates on two DNA virus families with contrasting pathogenic and immune evas ion strategies, namely poxviruses and HSV.