Unveiling the functional landscape of A-to-I RNA editing associated with Marek's disease in chickens.

In CD4+ T cells of chickens infected with Marek’s disease virus, 642 A-to-I RNA editing events were found, with CR1 repeat elements dominating and two L63-specific sites identified.

• Why it matters: RNA-level regulation via A-to-I editing is linked to antiviral responses, but its role in Marek’s disease virus infection and MD resistance in chickens is unclear.
• What they did: The study compared MD-resistant and susceptible chicken lines to profile A-to-I editing in CD4+ T cells, then linked 21 RESs to gene expression and additional RESs to amino acid changes, splicing, and miRNA-target binding.
• The result: Editing levels and counts differed by line and infection status, ADAR expression correlated with editing frequency, and enrichment highlighted MD-resistance–related immune terms including MHC class I complex in non-infected MD-resistant birds.

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