TBK1 and HIV-1 infection: While the mechanism(s) involved in HIV-1 infection-mediated impairment of JAK-STAT pathway remain to be determined, it has been shown that Vpr and Vif, two HIV-1 accessory proteins could bind to TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK1) and inhibit TBK1 autophosphorylation [27], which is a key step in the activation of IFN and NF-κB signaling pathways.