Type I interferon is a therapeutic target for virus-induced lethal vascular damage

Significance Lassa virus is, after dengue virus, the second most common cause of viral hemorrhagic fever. In susceptible individuals, Lassa virus infection is associated with vascular permeability, leading to tissue edema, organ failure, and death. Hemorrhagic fever viruses efficiently infect vascular endothelial cells, but are generally considered noncytopathic. Thus, the mechanism of virus-induced vascular injury remains unclear. Using the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus variant clone 13, a prototype of Lassa virus, we show here that lethal vascular leakage in susceptible mice was completely prevented by type I IFN receptor blockade. Therefore, approaches that target type I IFNs or effector molecules induced by these cytokines may be considered for the treatment of Lassa fever and other severe hemorrhagic viral illnesses.