Molecular mechanisms of suppression of host innate immunity by foot-and-mouth disease virus

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is an acute and highly contagious animal disease caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV). The outbreaks of FMD have brought huge economic losses and the disease has been considered as one of the most harmful infectious diseases to animal husbandry. The invasion of FMDV can be recognized by host immune system and the activated immune responses are responsible for suppression of viral infection and clearance of the virus. In order to maintain fitness and host adaptation, various viruses have evolved multiple elegant strategies to antagonize host immune response. In this review, we elaborated the molecular mechanisms of regulating host immunity by FMDV. We hope this will provide insights for FMD vaccine design, and help prevent and control FMD.