黄病毒基因组RNA5′和3′非编码区的结构和功能

黄病毒是一些世界范围内都很重要的疾病的致病因子,充分了解病毒的复制机制,可筛选阻止病毒复制的抗病毒因子,为疫苗的研制提供理论依据。黄病毒基因组RNA的5′和3′非编码区末端核苷酸都可形成高度保守的二级结构,与病毒的复制和病毒的神经毒力有关。本文对5′和3′非编码区的结构和功能研究进展进行综述。     

黄病毒基因组RNA5''''和3''''非编码区的结构和功能

黄病毒是一些世界范围内都很重要的疾病的致病因子 ,充分了解病毒的复制机制 ,可筛选阻止病毒复制的抗病毒因子 ,为疫苗的研制提供理论依据。黄病毒基因组RNA的 5 和 3 非编码区末端核苷酸都可形成高度保守的二级结构 ,与病毒的复制和病毒的神经毒力有关。本文对 5 和 3 非编码区的结构和功能研究进展进行综述。     

虫媒黄病毒亚基因组RNA

黄病毒是一大科人类致病性的单股正链RNA病毒。黄病毒包括登革病毒、西尼罗脑炎病毒及日本脑炎病毒等成员,主要径通过节肢动物的叮咬进行传播,即为虫媒黄病毒。研究发现,在虫媒黄病毒复制过程中,除病毒基因组正链RNA、互补的负链RNA及两者的杂合RNA分子外,在病毒感染细胞后还能产生一种病毒亚基因组RNA(subgenomic RNA,sgRNA)。近年对这种sgRNA展开了比较多的研究,结果表明,其产生机制与已知的其他病毒sgRNA产生机制并不相同。该sgRNA的产生与虫媒黄病毒基因组3’非编码区所形成的保守二级结构有关,同时宿主核酸酶对其的不完全降解亦有重要作用。虫媒黄病毒基因组3’非编码区中带有多个与病毒复制相关的RNA元件,而sgRNA的发现有助于全面地认识病毒RNA与宿主RNA代谢途径间的相互作用,为最终阐明病毒的致病机制奠定基础。     

小RNA病毒3'非编码区结构与功能的研究进展

小RNA病毒基因组的两侧分别为5′非编码区(UTR)和3′UTR。研究表明:5′/3′UTR能形成复杂的RNA结构,如颈-环结构、三叶草结构和假结体结构等,在病毒的复制或翻译过程中发挥重要调节作用。本文即对近10年来有关小RNA病毒3′UTR的结构与功能研究方面的进展情况进行综述。     

我国禽脑脊髓炎病毒分离株全基因组的测定

测定了我国禽脑脊髓炎病毒(avian encephalomyelitis virus,AEV)分离株L2Z株的全基因组核苷酸序列.该病毒株的3′和5′非编码区核苷酸序列用3′和5′RACE(cDNA末端快速扩增)法获得.基因组全长为7 059个核苷酸残基,包括494个核苷酸残基的5′非编码区、6 402个核苷酸残基的开放阅读框和136个核苷酸残基的3′非编码区及poly(A)尾巴.与已发表的AEV疫苗株1 143的基因组序列比较发现,它们之间核苷酸和氨基酸的同源性分别为98%和97.6%.结构蛋白(VP1～VP4)中,主要宿主保护性免疫原蛋白VP1氨基酸之间差异较小.与小RNA病毒科其它病毒属相比,在非结构蛋白3D中,预测的8个RNA依赖性RNA聚合酶主要结构域中的4个高度保守.从而进一步确认了AEV的分子特性.     

一种简单高效扩增人杯状病毒ORF2区RT-PCR方法的建立及其意义

人杯状病毒(human calicivirus,HuCV)属于杯状病毒科(Caliciviridae),是单股正链RNA病毒,长约7·5 kb,其3′末端有poly(A)结构。它可分为两个属:诺如病毒(Norovirus)和札如病毒(Sapovirus)[1],根据病毒抗原性和核苷酸序列的多样性,目前将诺如病毒和札如病毒分别划分为三个遗传组(group),每一遗传组依据RNA多聚酶及衣壳蛋白区域序列的差异,可进一步划分为不同群或基因型(cluster or genotype)。病毒基因组包括3个开放读码框(open reading frame,ORF),5′端和3′端各有一个小的非编码区。ORF1编码非结构蛋白的前体聚蛋白,其中包括RNA…     

野田村病毒RNA的复制机制

野田村病毒科Nodaviradae分为2个属,分别为主要感染昆虫的α野田村病毒属(Alphanodavirus)和主要感染鱼类的β野田村病毒属(Betanodavirus)。野田村病毒的基因组由2条单链正义RNA分子(RNA1和RNA2)所组成,RNA1编码蛋白A,即病毒负责复制病毒两条基因组的依赖RNA的RNA聚合酶催化亚基。RNA2编码衣壳前体蛋白α,此前体蛋白α先组装成原病毒粒子,再经历一次自我催化的成熟切割成2个病毒的衣壳蛋白β和γ,就成了成熟的有感染性的病毒粒子。在RNA复制过程中,从RNA1的3′末端会合成一个不被包装进病毒粒子的亚基因组RNA3。RNA1能在无RNA2的情况下自我复制,并持续地产生亚基因组RNA3,RNA3的合成采取的是提前终止机制。本文还介绍了野田村病毒复制的调节、非结构蛋白的功能和病毒复制在细胞内的定位。     

黄病毒的分子生物学——进展与展望

1984年国际病毒分类委员会(ICTV)建议将黄病毒属从披膜病毒科(Togaviridae)划出来成为新的病毒科——黄病毒科(Flaviviridae)。Westaway等给黄病毒科作了如下的定义:由一组有包膜的单链RNA病毒组成,直径为40—50nm。包膜通常含糖蛋白;RNA有传染性,RNA的分子量约为4×10~6Dalton,3′末端缺乏多聚腺苷酸(PolyA)。体外实验中,病毒基因组RNA可翻译出结构蛋白,无亚基因组(Subgenomic)mRNA合成。成熟病毒颗粒的形态发生位于改变了的内浆网小池(cisternae)中。黄病毒科目前仪由黄病毒属(Flavivirus)组成,黄病毒属大约包括70种病毒,其代     

黄病毒属病毒复制子载体研究进展

RNA复制子是一种能自主复制的RNA载体,保留了病毒非结构蛋白(复制/转录酶)基因,而结构蛋白基因缺失或由外源抗原基因替代,复制/转录酶可控制载体RNA在细胞质中高水平复制以及外源基因的高水平表达。在黄病毒属病毒感染性克隆基础上,其复制子载体得到了成功的构建。黄病毒属病毒复制子为病毒基因组结构功能研究、表达载体构建、假病毒包装及新型疫苗制备等提供了新的技术平台。本文综述黄病毒属病毒复制子的构建原理、方法及应用。     

茶尺蠖小RNA病毒5'端非编码区的克隆和测序及与哺乳动物小RNA病毒的比较分析

用Trizol从纯化的茶尺蠖Ectropis oblique小RNA病毒（EoPV）中提取病毒基因组RNA,逆转录后加poly(dT),然后进行两步PCR扩增基因组5′端。克隆测序后,对其5′端非编码区的核苷酸序列进行分析,发现具有哺乳动物小RNA病毒的5′端非编码区的一些特征：A/T含量丰富、起始密码子上游AUG和小顺反子多。利用mfold预测了EoPV 5′端非编码区的二级结构,存在4个茎环结构,有哺乳动物内部核糖体进入位点（IRES）的保守区域,即含保守基序GNRA的茎环A和A/C丰富的环B及多聚嘧啶区域。据此推测EoPV基因组翻译采用IRES起始机制。     

Long untranslated regions of the measles virus M and F genes control virus replication and cytopathogenicity

Measles is still a major cause of mortality mainly in developing countries. The causative agent, measles virus (MeV), is an enveloped virus having a nonsegmented negative-sense RNA genome, and belongs to the genus Morbillivirus of the family Paramyxoviridae. One feature of the moribillivirus genomes is that the M and F genes have long untranslated regions (UTRs). The M and F mRNAs of MeV have 426-nucleotide-long 3' and 583-nucleotide-long 5' UTRs, respectively. Though these long UTRs occupy as much as approximately 6.4% of the virus genome, their function remains unknown. To elucidate the role of the long UTRs in the context of virus infection, we used the reverse genetics based on the virulent strain of MeV, and generated a series of recombinant viruses having alterations or deletions in the long UTRs. Our results showed that these long UTRs per se were not essential for MeV replication, but that they regulated MeV replication and cytopathogenicity by modulating the productions of the M and F proteins. The long 3' UTR of the M mRNA was shown to have the ability to increase the M protein production, promoting virus replication. On the other hand, the long 5' UTR of the F mRNA was found to possess the capacity to decrease the F protein production, inhibiting virus replication and yet greatly reducing cytopathogenicity. We speculate that the reduction in cytopathogenicity may be advantageous for MeV fitness and survival in nature.     

Control of translation by the 5'- and 3'-terminal regions of the dengue virus genome

The genomic RNAs of flaviviruses such as dengue virus (DEN) have a 5' m7GpppN cap like those of cellular mRNAs but lack a 3' poly(A) tail. We have studied the contributions to translational expression of 5'- and 3'-terminal regions of the DEN serotype 2 genome by using luciferase reporter mRNAs transfected into Vero cells. DCLD RNA contained the entire DEN 5' and 3' untranslated regions (UTRs), as well as the first 36 codons of the capsid coding region fused to the luciferase reporter gene. Capped DCLD RNA was as efficiently translated in Vero cells as capped GLGpA RNA, a reporter with UTRs from the highly expressed alpha-globin mRNA and a 72-residue poly(A) tail. Analogous reporter RNAs with regulatory sequences from West Nile and Sindbis viruses were also strongly expressed. Although capped DCLD RNA was expressed much more efficiently than its uncapped form, uncapped DCLD RNA was translated 6 to 12 times more efficiently than uncapped RNAs with UTRs from globin mRNA. The 5' cap and DEN 3' UTR were the main sources of the translational efficiency of DCLD RNA, and they acted synergistically in enhancing translation. The DEN 3' UTR increased mRNA stability, although this effect was considerably weaker than the enhancement of translational efficiency. The DEN 3' UTR thus has translational regulatory properties similar to those of a poly(A) tail. Its translation-enhancing effect was observed for RNAs with globin or DEN 5' sequences, indicating no codependency between viral 5' and 3' sequences. Deletion studies showed that translational enhancement provided by the DEN 3' UTR is attributable to the cumulative contributions of several conserved elements, as well as a nonconserved domain adjacent to the stop codon. One of the conserved elements was the conserved sequence (CS) CS1 that is complementary to cCS1 present in the 5' end of the DEN polyprotein open reading frame. Complementarity between CS1 and cCS1 was not required for efficient translation.     

Dengue virus utilizes a novel strategy for translation initiation when cap-dependent translation is inhibited

Viruses have developed numerous mechanisms to usurp the host cell translation apparatus. Dengue virus (DEN) and other flaviviruses, such as West Nile and yellow fever viruses, contain a 5' m7GpppN-capped positive-sense RNA genome with a nonpolyadenylated 3' untranslated region (UTR) that has been presumed to undergo translation in a cap-dependent manner. However, the means by which the DEN genome is translated effectively in the presence of capped, polyadenylated cellular mRNAs is unknown. This report demonstrates that DEN replication and translation are not affected under conditions that inhibit cap-dependent translation by targeting the cap-binding protein eukaryotic initiation factor 4E, a key regulator of cellular translation. We further show that under cellular conditions in which translation factors are limiting, DEN can alternate between canonical cap-dependent translation initiation and a noncanonical mechanism that appears not to require a functional m7G cap. This DEN noncanonical translation is not mediated by an internal ribosome entry site but requires the interaction of the DEN 5' and 3' UTRs for activity, suggesting a novel strategy for translation of animal viruses.     

Stability and conformation of the dimeric HIV-1 genomic RNA 5′UTR

During HIV-1 assembly, the viral Gag polyprotein specifically selects the dimeric RNA genome for packaging into new virions. The 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR) of the dimeric genome may adopt a conformation that is optimal for recognition by Gag. Further conformational rearrangement of the 5′UTR, promoted by the nucleocapsid (NC) domain of Gag, is predicted during virus maturation. Two 5′UTR dimer conformations, the kissing dimer (KD) and the extended dimer (ED), have been identified in vitro, which differ in the extent of intermolecular basepairing. Whether 5′UTRs from different HIV-1 strains with distinct sequences have access to the same dimer conformations has not been determined. Here, we applied fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy and single-molecule Förster resonance energy transfer imaging to demonstrate that 5′UTRs from two different HIV-1 subtypes form (KDs) with divergent stabilities. We further show that both 5′UTRs convert to a stable dimer in the presence of the viral NC protein, adopting a conformation consistent with extensive intermolecular contacts. These results support a unified model in which the genomes of diverse HIV-1 strains adopt an ED conformation.     

Three-dimensional structure of a flavivirus dumbbell RNA reveals molecular details of an RNA regulator of replication

Mosquito-borne flaviviruses (MBFVs) including dengue, West Nile, yellow fever, and Zika viruses have an RNA genome encoding one open reading frame flanked by 5′ and 3′ untranslated regions (UTRs). The 3′ UTRs of MBFVs contain regions of high sequence conservation in structured RNA elements known as dumbbells (DBs). DBs regulate translation and replication of the viral RNA genome, functions proposed to depend on the formation of an RNA pseudoknot. To understand how DB structure provides this function, we solved the x-ray crystal structure of the Donggang virus DB to 2.1Å resolution and used structural modeling to reveal the details of its three-dimensional fold. The structure confirmed the predicted pseudoknot and molecular modeling revealed how conserved sequences form a four-way junction that appears to stabilize the pseudoknot. Single-molecule FRET suggests that the DB pseudoknot is a stable element that can regulate the switch between translation and replication during the viral lifecycle by modulating long-range RNA conformational changes.     

A bulged stem-loop structure in the 3' untranslated region of the genome of the coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus is essential for replication.

The 3' untranslated region (UTR) of the positive-sense RNA genome of the coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) contains sequences that are necessary for the synthesis of negative-strand viral RNA as well as sequences that may be crucial for both genomic and subgenomic positive-strand RNA synthesis. We have found that the entire 3' UTR of MHV could be replaced by the 3' UTR of bovine coronavirus (BCV), which diverges overall by 31% in nucleotide sequence. This exchange between two viruses that are separated by a species barrier was carried out by targeted RNA recombination. Our results define regions of the two 3' UTRs that are functionally equivalent despite having substantial sequence substitutions, deletions, or insertions with respect to each other. More significantly, our attempts to generate an unallowed substitution of a particular portion of the BCV 3' UTR for the corresponding region of the MHV 3' UTR led to the discovery of a bulged stem-loop RNA secondary structure, adjacent to the stop codon of the nucleocapsid gene, that is essential for MHV viral RNA replication.     

Specific interaction between the classical swine fever virus NS5B protein and the viral genome.

The NS5B protein of the classical swine fever virus (CSFV) is the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of the virus and is able to catalyze the viral genome replication. The 3' untranslated region is most likely involved in regulation of the Pestivirus genome replication. However, little is known about the interaction between the CSFV NS5B protein and the viral genome. We used different RNA templates derived from the plus-strand viral genome, or the minus-strand viral genome and the CSFV NS5B protein obtained from the Escherichia coli expression system to address this problem. We first showed that the viral NS5B protein formed a complex with the plus-strand genome through the genomic 3' UTR and that the NS5B protein was also able to bind the minus-strand 3' UTR. Moreover, it was found that viral NS5B protein bound the minus-strand 3' UTR more efficiently than the plus-strand 3' UTR. Further, we observed that the plus-strand 3' UTR with deletion of CCCGG or 21 continuous nucleotides at its 3' terminal had no binding activity and also lost the activity for initiation of minus-strand RNA synthesis, which similarly occurred in the minus-strand 3' UTR with CATATGCTC or the 21 nucleotide fragment deleted from the 3' terminal. Therefore, it is indicated that the 3' CCCGG sequence of the plus-strand 3' UTR, and the 3' CATATGCTC fragment of the minus-strand are essential to in vitro synthesis of the minus-strand RNA and the plus-strand RNA, respectively. The same conclusion is also appropriate for the 3' 21 nucleotide terminal site of both the 3' UTRs.     

Conformational organization of the 3' untranslated region in the tomato bushy stunt virus genome

The 3' untranslated regions (UTRs) of positive-strand RNA viruses often form complex structures that facilitate various viral processes. We have examined the RNA conformation of the 352 nucleotide (nt) long 3' UTR of the Tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV) genome with the goal of defining both local and global structures that are important for virus viability. Gel mobility analyses of a 3'-terminal 81 nt segment of the 3' UTR revealed that it is able to form a compact RNA domain (or closed conformation) that is stabilized by a previously proposed tertiary interaction. RNA-RNA gel shift assays were used to provide the first physical evidence for the formation of this tertiary interaction and revealed that it represents the dominant or "default" structure in the TBSV genome. Further analysis showed that the tertiary interaction involves five base pairs, each of which contributes differently to overall complex stability. Just upstream from the 3'-terminal domain, a long-distance RNA-RNA interaction involving 3' UTR sequences was found to be required for efficient viral RNA accumulation in vivo and to also contribute to the formation of the 3'-terminal domain in vitro. Collectively, these results provide a comprehensive overview of the conformational and functional organization of the 3' UTR of the TBSV genome.