{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,19]],"date-time":"2026-09-19T16:30:24Z","timestamp":1789835424537,"version":"4.0.1"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"10","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,24]],"date-time":"2025-09-24T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1758672000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["31572490"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["31572490"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Veterinary Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Coronaviruses, including avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), utilize host cellular pathways to evade the host immune response. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), a key antiviral regulator exploited by mammalian coronaviruses like SARS-CoV-2, remains unclear in avian coronavirus pathogenesis. This study examined AhR\u2019s involvement during IBV infection using H1299 and Vero cells with pharmacological modulation (AhR antagonist CH223191\/agonist kynurenine) and shRNA-mediated silencing. Viral replication was quantified through plaque assays, qRT-PCR, and Western blot. The results reveal IBV-induced AhR activation, driving downstream CYP1A1 expression and pro-inflammatory cytokine production. CH223191 treatment reduced IBV titers, RNA loads, and N protein expression dose-dependently, while kynurenine showed no effect. AhR knockdown similarly reduced N protein expression, confirming its proviral role. An IBV-encoded noncoding RNA was identified as a modulator of AhR activation, suggesting viral balancing of immune evasion and replication efficiency. These results establish AhR as a conserved host factor co-opted by IBV, and highlight AhR antagonism as a promising therapeutic strategy. By bridging insights from avian and mammalian coronaviruses, this work informs strategies to address IBV\u2019s genetic variability and supports development of broad-spectrum antiviral therapies.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/vetsci12100932","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,25]],"date-time":"2025-09-25T08:56:44Z","timestamp":1758790604000},"page":"932","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Infectious Bronchitis Virus Activates the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor During In Vitro Infection"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Mingjing","family":"Zhang","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zhichao","family":"Cai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Hongliu","family":"An","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rong","family":"He","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8425-1434","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Songbai","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9943-5204","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Shouguo","family":"Fang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,9,24]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12694","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.0403127101","article-title":"Major Genetic Marker of Nidoviruses Encodes a Replicative Endoribonuclease","volume":"101","author":"Ivanov","year":"2004","journal-title":"Proc. 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