STAT2 and viral infectious disease: In the infected cells, the “Interferon Signaling” pathway, which is central to the innate defense mechanisms of the host against viral infection, included 12 up-regulated genes: IFIT1, IFIT3, IFITM1, IFNβ1, IRF1, JAK2, MX1, OAS1, PSMB8, SOCS1, STAT1 and STAT2. An additional 14 up-regulated genes were involved in the activation of IRF by the cytosolic pattern recognition receptor pathway (ADAR, DDX58, DHX58, IFIH1, IFIT2, IFNβ1, IL10, IRF7, ISG15, NFKBIA, STAT1, STAT2, TNF and ZBP1).