Also, in our subsequent analysis of both generic type 1 interferon-inducible gene expression and pulmonary IFN-β expression we found generally lower expression levels after infection with Beijing-1585 and EAI-1627 compared to H37Rv, thus questioning the direct association of Mycobacterium tuberculosis virulence with type 1 interferon activity during acute infection. Here, IFNB1 is linked to infection.