Optineurin deficiency impairs autophagy to cause interferon beta overproduction and increased survival of mice following viral infection.

Our findings indicate that the combination of optineurin deficiency and viral infection leads to IFNβ overproduction in vitro and in vivo. The effects of optineurin deficiency are elicited by viral infection, therefore, viral infection may be implicated in the development of optineurin-related diseases.