Here, we show that MERS-CoV-Δ4b infection did not induce IFN in Huh-7 cells, while a limited IFN response was observed in Calu-3 cells, suggesting that additional mechanisms independent of 4b expression are used by MERS-CoV to inhibit IFN production [3, 22, 23]. This evidence concerns the gene IFNA1 and infection.