Shared principles of human and bacterial antiviral immunity

TL;DR - This Nature Review identifies ancient, conserved principles shared by human antiviral immunity and bacterial anti-phage defenses. These parallels reveal common rules governing host–virus interactions across life.

• Compares antiviral mechanisms in humans with bacterial defenses against phages.
• Organizes shared mechanisms around pathogen sensing, signalling, and effector functions.
• Argues that core antiviral strategies are evolutionarily ancient and conserved.
• Provides a cross-domain framework for understanding immune defense.