MAPK8 and viral infectious disease: [16]–[18], and Listeria monocytogenes[19], [20]. Upon viral infection, activation of the gene encoding IFN-β critically depends on cooperative interaction of the DNA-binding domains of ATF-2/c-Jun and the immune regulatory factor (IRF)-3 [21]. ATF-2 and c-Jun are members of the large basic-region leucine zipper family of transcription factors, constituting the AP-1 transcription factor complex, which are activated by phosphorylation via mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK). Whereas ATF-2 is activated by both the p38 and JNK MAPK, c-Jun is only phosphorylated by JNK [22].