Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) infection in cloven-hoofed animals causes severe inflammatory symptoms, including blisters on the oral mucosa, hoof, and breast; however, the molecular mechanism underlying the inflammatory response is unclear. In this study, we provide the first evidence that the FMDV protein VP3 activates lipopolysaccharide-triggered Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling. FMDV VP3 increased the expression of TLR4 by downregulating the expression of the lysozyme-related protein Rab7b. Additionally, Rab7b can interact with VP3 to promote the replication of FMDV. Our findings suggested that VP3 regulates the Rab7b-TLR4 axis to mediate the inflammatory response to FMDV. IMPORTANCE Foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) infection causes a severe inflammatory response in cloven-hoofed animals, such as pigs, cattle, and sheep, with typical clinical manifestations of high fever, numerous blisters on the oral mucosa, hoof, and breast, as well as myocarditis (tigroid heart). However, the mechanism underlying the inflammatory response caused by FMDV is enigmatic. In this study, we identified the VP3 protein of FMDV as an important proinflammatory factor. Mechanistically, VP3 interacted with TLR4 to promote TLR4 expression by inhibiting the expression of the lysozyme-related protein Rab7b. Our findings suggest that FMDV VP3 is a major proinflammatory factor in FMDV-infected hosts.
Keywords: Rab7b; TLR4; VP3; foot-and-mouth disease virus; proinflammatory factor.