Type III interferon gene expression in response to influenza virus infection in chicken and duck embryonic fibroblasts

• The expression of type III IFNs and their receptor were upregulated both in DEFs and CEFs following influenza virus infection.
• The expression levels of type III IFNs and their receptor were significantly higher at each time point in CEFs compared with DEFs after influenza virus infection.
• The cells of chicken and duck showed distinct expression patterns for type III IFNs and their receptor in response to influenza virus infection.

Type III interferons (IFN-λs) comprise a group of newly identified antiviral cytokines that are functionally similar to type I IFNs and elicit first-line antiviral responses. Recently, type III IFNs were identified in several species; however, little information is available about type III IFNs in ducks. We compared the expression of type III IFNs and their receptor in chicken embryonic fibroblasts (CEFs) and duck embryonic fibroblasts (DEFs) in response to influenza virus infection. The results showed that the expression of type III IFNs was upregulated in both DEFs and CEFs following infection with H1N1 influenza virus or treatment with poly (I:C), and expression levels were significantly higher in CEFs than in DEFs at each time point. The expression of the receptor for type III IFNs (IL-28Rα) was also upregulated following infection with H1N1 virus or treatment with poly (I:C) and was significantly higher in CEFs than in DEFs at each time point. The expression of the receptor for type III IFNs occurred from 8 hpi and remained at similar levels until 36 hpi in CEFs, but the expression level was elevated from 36 hpi in DEFs. These findings revealed the existence of distinct expression patterns for type III IFNs in chickens and ducks in response to influenza virus infection. The provided data are fundamentally useful in furthering our understanding of type III IFNs and innate antiviral responses in different species.