Type I interferons (IFN-α/β)
DETyp-I-Interferone (IFN-α/β)
Type I interferons are your body's first-line antiviral alarm signals. The main ones are IFN-α (many subtypes) and IFN-β. Almost any cell with a nucleus can release them when it detects viral genetic material. The sensors include the cGAS-STING pathway (for stray DNA) and TLR7/TLR9 (for endosomal RNA and DNA). They act through a receptor (IFNAR1/IFNAR2) to switch on hundreds of 'interferon-stimulated genes'. Those put the cell into an antiviral state, fire up NK cells, and bridge innate to adaptive immunity. The problem in aging is low-level, chronic IFN signaling. It is driven by accumulated stray DNA, leaked mitochondrial DNA, and reactivated jumping genes that trip cGAS-STING. That chronic signaling is an important part of inflammaging. The extreme version shows up in rare genetic diseases (SAVI and Singleton-Merten syndrome), where uncontrolled type I IFN damages tissue.
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