Abortive PDCoV infection triggers Wnt/β-catenin pathway activation, enhancing intestinal stem cell self-renewal and promoting chicken resistance.

Summary: Have you ever wondered why some viruses make pigs very sick but barely affect chickens? Scientists looked at a pig virus called PDCoV. They found that when this virus tries to infect chicken guts, it gets stuck. The virus enters the cells but cannot make copies of itself. Even better, this "failed" infection wakes up special stem cells in the chicken's gut. These stem cells quickly heal the gut and make the chicken stronger against the virus. It is like a failed break-in that makes a house upgrade its security system!