The signal transducer and activator of transcription in antiviral responses

The signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) proteins are essential to cell proliferation, cell survival, apoptosis, and differentiation. STAT1 and STAT2 proteins are important to antiviral response in IFNs pathways that function by direct binding to viruses. Although studies of STATs have been conducted for many years, their structures have yet to be completely established. The STAT1 structure of residues 1-683 for its role in an antiviral INF response and several genes specific for STAT1-binding viruses such as Nipah virus and Ebola viruses were identified. The binding domain for STAT1 and STAT2 is conserved in four proteins (C, P, V, and W), which are encoded by the Nipah virus. The structures of three VP24 Ebola viruses, Zaire, Sudan, and Reston, were determined, and the binding domain to STAT1 established. This review summarizes the structural and functional characterization of the signal transducer an activator of transcription. The information provided herein will improve our understanding of the antiviral response of the IFNs signaling pathway to drug development.