Anti-HIV-1 property of trichosanthin correlates with its ribosome inactivating activity

Trichosanthin (TCS) is a type I ribosome inactivating (RI) protein possessing anti-tumor and antiviral activity, including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The mechanism of these actions is not entirely clear, but is generally attributed to its RI property. In order to study the relationship between the anti-HIV-1 activity of TCS and its RI activity, three TCS mutants with different RI activities were constructed by using site-directed mutagenesis. The anti-HIV-1 activities of the three mutants were tested in vitro. Results showed that two TCS mutants, namely TCS(M(120-123)), TCS(E160A/E189A), with the greatest decrease in RI activity, lost almost all of the anti-HIV activity and cytopathic effect. Another mutant TCS(R122G), which exhibited a 160-fold decrease in RI activity, retained some anti-HIV activity. The results from this study suggested that RI activity of TCS may have significant contribution to its anti-HIV-1 property.     

Independency of anti-HIV-1 activity from ribosome-inactivating activity of trichosanthin

Trichosanthin (TCS) is a type I ribosome-inactivating (RI) protein possessing multiple biological and pharmacological activities. Its major action is inhibition of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) replication but the mechanism is still elusive. All evidences showed that this action is related to its RI activity. Previous studies found that TCS mutants with reduced RI activity simultaneously lost some anti-HIV activity. In this study, an exception was demonstrated by two TCS mutants retaining almost all RI activity but were devoid of anti-HIV-1 activity. Five mutants were constructed by using site-directed mutagenesis with either deletion or addition of amino acids to the C-terminal sequence. Results showed that the RI activity of mutants with C-terminal deletion mutants (TCS(C2), TCS(C4), and TCS(C14)) decreased by 1.2-3.3-fold with parallel downshifting of its anti-HIV-1 activity (1.4-4.8-fold). Another two mutants, TCS(C19aa) and TCS(KDEL) having 19 amino acid extension and a KDEL signal sequence added to the C-terminal sequence, retained all RI activity but subsequently lost most of the anti-HIV-1 activity. These findings suggested that ribosome inactivation alone might not be adequate to explain the anti-HIV action of TCS.     

核糖体失活蛋白抗HIV-1作用的研究进展

核糖体失活蛋白(RIPs)抗HIV-1活性研究已有十几年的历史。RIPs类化合物代表了抗HIV/AIDS天然产物或先导化合物发展的一个重要方向。本文从介绍RIPs的酶活性及其抗HIV-1活性入手,对RIPs抗HIV-1的可能机制,从与RIPs酶活性的关系、诱导HIV-1感染细胞的凋亡及相应的信号转导、诱发活性氧的产生,以及对HIV-1整合酶的抑制作用等几个方面做了较详尽的阐述,并对RIPs的结构修饰和抗HIV-1构效关系进行了综述。对RIPs类化合物在抗病毒领域进行深入而系统地研究,能拓宽其在抗HIV/AIDS临床上的进一步应用。     

The C-terminal end of P proteins mediates ribosome inactivation by trichosanthin but does not affect the pokeweed antiviral protein activity

Ribosome inactivating proteins (RIPs) inhibit protein synthesis depurinating a conserved residue in the sarcin/ricin loop of ribosomes. Some RIPs are only active against eukaryotic ribosomes, but other RIPs inactivate with similar efficiency prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomes, suggesting that different RIPs would interact with different proteins. The SRL in Trypanosoma cruzi ribosomes is located on a 178b RNA molecule named 28Sδ. In addition, T. cruzi ribosomes are remarkably resistant to TCS. In spite of these peculiarities, we show that TCS specifically depurinate the predicted A⁵¹ residue on 28Sδ. We also demonstrated that the C-terminal end of ribosomal P proteins is needed for full activity of the toxin. In contrast to TCS, PAP inactivated efficiently T.cruzi ribosomes, and most importantly, does not require from the C-terminal end of P proteins. These results could explain, at least partially, the different selectivity of these toxins against prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomes.     

Enhanced apoptotic action of trichosanthin in HIV-1 infected cells

Trichosanthin (TCS) is a type 1 ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP) effective against HIV-1 replication. The mechanism is not clear. Present results suggested that the antiviral action may be partly mediated through enhanced apoptosis on infected cells. TCS induced apoptosis in normal H9 cells and this action was more potent in those infected with HIV-1. In flow cytometry study, TCS induced larger population of apoptotic H9 cells chronically infected with HIV-1 in a dose-dependent manner. At TCS concentration of 25 microg/ml, 8.4% of normal H9 cells were found to be apoptotic whereas the same concentration induced 24.5% in HIV-1 chronically infected cells. Such difference was not found in the control experiments without TCS treatment. Two other studies supported this action. Cytotoxic study showed that cell viability was always lower in HIV-1 infected cells after TCS treatment, and DNA fragmentation study confirmed more laddering in infected cells. The mechanism of TCS induced apoptosis in normal or infected H9 cells is not clear. Results in this study demonstrated that TCS is more effective in inducing apoptosis in HIV-1 infected cells. This may explain in part the antiviral action of TCS.     

A new activity of anti-HIV and anti-tumor protein GAP31: DNA adenosine glycosidase - Structural and modeling insight into its functions

We report here the high-resolution atomic structures of GAP31 crystallized in the presence of HIV-LTR DNA oligonucleotides systematically designed to examine the adenosine glycosidase activity of this anti-HIV and anti-tumor plant protein. Structural analysis and molecular modeling lead to several novel findings. First, adenine is bound at the active site in the crystal structures of GAP31 to HIV-LTR duplex DNA with 5′ overhanging adenosine ends, such as the 3′-processed HIV-LTR DNA but not to DNA duplex with blunt ends. Second, the active site pocket of GAP31 is ideally suited to accommodate the 5′ overhanging adenosine of the 3′-processed HIV-LTR DNA and the active site residues are positioned to perform the adenosine glycosidase activity. Third, GAP31 also removes the 5′-end adenine from single-stranded HIV-LTR DNA oligonucleotide as well as any exposed adenosine, including that of single nucleotide dAMP but not from AMP. Fourth, GAP31 does not de-purinate guanosine from di-nucleotide GT. These results suggest that GAP31 has DNA adenosine glycosidase activity against accessible adenosine. This activity is distinct from the generally known RNA N-glycosidase activity toward the 28S rRNA. It may be an alternative function that contributes to the antiviral and anti-tumor activities of GAP31. These results provide molecular insights consistent with the anti-HIV mechanisms of GAP31 in its inhibition on the integration of viral DNA into the host genome by HIV-integrase as well as irreversible topological relaxation of the supercoiled viral DNA.     

A novel sorting strategy of trichosanthin for hijacking human immunodeficiency virus type 1

Trichosanthin (TCS) is a type I ribosome-inactivating protein that plays dual role of plant toxin and anti-viral peptide. The sorting mechanism of such an exogenous protein is in long pursuit. Here, we examined TCS trafficking in cells expressing the HIV-1 scaffold protein Gag, and we found that TCS preferentially targets the Gag budding sites at plasma membrane or late endosomes depending on cell types. Lipid raft membrane but not the Gag protein mediates the association of TCS with viral components. After Gag budding, TCS is then released in association with the virus-like particles to generate TCS-enriched virions. The resulting TCS-enriched HIV-1 exhibits severely impaired infectivity. Overall, the observations indicate the existence of a unique and elaborate sorting strategy for hijacking HIV-1.     

Identification of HIV-1 nucleocapsid protein: nucleic acid antagonists with cellular anti-HIV activity

The crucial functions of HIV-1 nucleocapsid-p7 protein (NC-p7) at different stages of HIV replication are dependent on its nucleic acid binding properties. In this study, a search has been made to identify antagonists of the interaction between NC-p7 and d(TG)(4). A chemical library of approximately 2000 small molecules (the NCI Diversity Set) was screened, of the 26 active inhibitors that were identified, five contained a xanthenyl ring structure. Further analysis of 63 structurally related compounds led to the identification of 2,3,4,5-tetrachloro-6-(4('),5('),6(')-trihydroxy-3(')-oxo-3H-xanthen-9(')-yl)benzoic acid, which binds to NC-p7 stoichiometrically. This compound exerted a significant anti-HIV activity in vitro with an IC(50) of 16.6+/-4.3 microM (means+/-SD). Synthetic variants lacking the two hydroxyls at positions 4(') and 5(') in the xanthenyl ring system failed to bind NC-p7 and showed significantly less protection against HIV infection. Molecular modeling predicts that these hydroxyl groups would bind to the amide nitrogen of Gly(35) with other contacts at the carbonyl oxygens of Gly(40) and Lys(33).     

Molecular cloning and functional identification of a ribosome inactivating/antiviral protein from leaves of post-flowering stage of Celosia cristata and its expression in E. coli

A full-length cDNA clone, encoding a ribosome inactivating/antiviral protein (RIP/AVP) was isolated from the cDNA library of post-flowering stage of Celosia cristata leaves. The full-length cDNA consisted of 1015 nucleotides, with an open reading frame encoding 283 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence had a putative active site domain conserved in other ribosome inactivating/antiviral proteins (RIPs/AVPs). The coding region of the cDNA was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli as recombinant protein of 72 kDa. The expressed fusion product was confirmed by Western analysis and purification by affinity chromatography. Both the recombinant protein (reCCP-27) and purified expressed protein (eCCP-27) inhibited translation in rabbit reticulocytes showing IC50 values at 95 ng and 45 ng, respectively. The native purified nCCP-27 has IC50 at 25 ng. The purified product also showed N-glycosidase activity towards tobacco ribosomes and antiviral activity towards tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and sunnhemp rosette virus (SRV).     

Trichosanthin suppresses the elevation of p38 MAPK, and Bcl-2 induced by HSV-1 infection in Vero cells

Trichosanthin (TCS) is a type 1 ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP) effective against HIV-1 and HSV-1 replication. The mechanism of its antiviral activity is not clear. Many believe that it is related to ribosome inactivation. Some RIPs and viral infection affect the phosphorylation of MAPK and Bcl-2 and these proteins may be the common element linking RIP and viral infection. This study investigated the effect of HSV-1 infection on p38 MAPK and Bcl-2 as well as possible interference by TCS. Results showed that HSV-1 infection induced an elevation of phosphorylated p38 and Bcl-2 in Vero cells, which could be partially blocked by TCS. At the same time, both viral replication and host cells viability were lowered. Viral replication, Vero cell viability, p38 MAPK and Bcl-2 were further reduced with the addition of a p38 MAPK inhibitor (SB203580). This suggested that TCS may interfere with MAPK and Bcl-2 signals generated by infection leading to inhibition of viral replication. In summary, our results demonstrated that HSV-1 infection in Vero cells induced an elevation of p38 MAPK and Bcl-2. TCS suppressed this rise and reduced viral replication. The MAPK family may play a role in the antiviral mechanism of TCS.     

Physiological response of Pseudomonas putida S12 subjected to reduced water activity

Abstract The effect of osmotic stress, given as decreased water activity (a_w), on growth and the accumulation of potassium and the compatible solute betaine by Pseudomonas putida S12 was investigated. Reduced a_w was imposed by addition of sodium chloride, sucrose, glycerol or polyethylene glycol to the growth medium. Accumulation of potassium and betaine was established when sodium chloride and sucrose were used to cause osmotic stress. No accumulation of these solutes was found in the presence of glycerol. Addition of polyethylene glycol to the medium strongly decreased the growth rate in comparison with the other osmolytes tested at the corresponding a_w. Although polyethylene glycol did decrease the a_w, neither potassium nor betaine was accumulated by the cells.     

卡波氏肉瘤相关病毒感染激活Jurkat细胞抗-HIV基因表达的研究

目的:观察Jurkat细胞感染卡波氏肉瘤相关病毒(Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpes virus,KSHV)后细胞内几条主要的抗HIV作用的基因(RANTES、APOBEC3G、APOBEC3F、MX1、MX2)表达情况。方法:首先用佛波酯(TPA)(20ng/ml)刺激BCBL-1细胞72小时,提取KSHV病毒滤液。然后把含KSHV滤液的RPMI-1640培养Jurkat细胞。24小时后,分别在感染后第3、5天收集细胞,提取细胞总RNA,通过实时定量PCR检测分析相关基因的表达情况。结果:通过对KSHV感染不同时期的细胞抗-HIV基因表达分析,结果显示:与未感染组相比,KSHV感染组的Jurkat细胞内的多条抗HIV-1基因表达上调。感染第3天,RANTES上调123倍,APOBEC3G上调3.12倍,A POBEC3F上调1.18倍,MIX1上调2.75倍,MIX2上调4.35倍,感染第5天RANTES上调11.91倍,MX1上调2.72倍,MIX2上调2.22倍。结论:KSHV感染在一定程度上激活Jurkat细胞抗HIV相关基因的表达。     

Synthesis,anti-HIV activity,integrase enzyme inhibition and molecular modeling of catechol,hydroquinone and quinol labdane analogs

Labdane analogs with o-quinol, catechol and hydroquinone moiety have been synthesized using Diels–Alder reaction of methyl 3,4-dioxocyclohexa-1,5-diene-carboxylate, 3,4-dioxocyclohexa-1,5-diene-carboxylic acid and 3,6-dioxocyclohexa-1,4-dienecarboxylic acid with mono terpene 1,3-dienes, namely ocimene and myrcene. The resulting molecules and their derivatives were evaluated for their anti-HIV-1 activity using TZM-bl cell based virus infectivity assay. Two molecules 13 and 18 showed anti-HIV activity with IC₅₀ values 5.0 (TI = 11) and 4.6 (TI = 46) μM, respectively. The compounds 17, 18 and 20 showed efficacy against HIV-1 integrase activity and showed inhibition with IC₅₀ 13.4, 11.1 and 11.5 μM, respectively. The HIV-1 integrase inhibition activity of these synthetic molecules was comparable with integric acid, the natural fungal metabolite. Molecular modeling studies for the HIV-1 integrase inhibition of these active synthetic molecules indicated the binding to the active site residues of the enzyme.     

Semi-synthesis of oxygenated dolabellane diterpenes with highly in vitro anti-HIV-1 activity

Research on dolabellane diterpenes of brown algae Dictyota spp. has shown that these diterpenoids have strong anti-HIV-1 activity, but there are not data about antiviral activity of dolabellane diterpenes isolated from octocorals, which are antipodes of those isolated from the brown algae. Dolabellanes 13-keto-1(R),11(S)-dolabella-3(E),7(E),12(18)-triene (1) and β-Araneosene (2) were isolated from the Caribbean octocoral Eunicea laciniata, and both showed low anti-HIV-1 activity and low toxicity. Since it was shown that oxygenated dolabellanes from algae have better anti-HIV-1 activity, in this work some derivatives of the main dolabellane of E. laciniata 1 were obtained by epoxidation (3), epoxide opening (4), and allylic oxidation (5). The derivatives showed significant improvement in the anti-HIV-1potency (100-fold), being compounds 3 and 5 the most active ones. Their high antiviral activities, along with their low cytotoxicity, make them promissory antiviral compounds; and it is worth noting that the absolute configuration at the ring junction in the dolabellane skeleton does not seem to be determinant in the antiviral potency of these diterpeneoids.     

家蚕磷酸吡哆醇氧化酶的体外定点突变及其活性鉴定

[目的]研究家蚕Bombyx mori磷酸吡哆醇氧化酶(pyridoxine 5’-phosphate oxidase,PNPO)个别保守氨基酸残基对PNPO酶活性的影响.[方法]用重叠延伸法把氨基酸残基Lys111 (AAA)突变为Glu (GAA),Ser160(AGC)定点突变为Ala(GCC);构建重组表达载体...     

Synthesis and activity of N-acyl azacyclic urea HIV-1 protease inhibitors with high potency against multiple drug resistant viral strains

As part of our efforts to identify potent HIV-1 protease inhibitors that are active against resistant viral strains, structural modification of the azacyclic urea (I) was undertaken by incorporating acyl groups as P₁′ ligands. The extensive SAR study has yielded a series of N-acyl azacyclic ureas (II), which are highly potent against both wild-type and multiple PI-resistant viral strains.     

N-乙酰半胱氨酸体外对流感病毒H1N1的抑制作用

目的探讨N-乙酰半胱氨酸（N—acetylcysteine,NAC）在体外对流感病毒H1N1的抑制作用。方法采用MTT法、鸡胚接种法和免疫荧光法,观察NAC对流感病毒HlM的抑制作用。采用血球凝集试验、神经氨酸酶活性抑制试验和透射电镜负染技术,初步探讨NAC对流感病毒HlM的抑制机制。结果NAC在MDCK细胞上的最大无毒剂量是6．25mg／mL;流感病毒H1Nl在MDCK细胞上的半数致死感染浓度（TCID-50）为1012-2.25／100μ;在三种作用途径下（治疗性给药、预防性给药和直接灭活后给药）,NAC明显抑制了流感病毒HlNl对MDCK细胞的感染,细胞存活率分别为91．88％、93．21％、94．67％,在对照组,流感病毒H1N1感染后的细胞存活率为28．32％,两者相比差异有统计学意义（P〈0．05）;免疫荧光结果显示,与病毒对照组形成的强特异性荧光相比,三种作用途径感染MDCK细胞后的特异性荧光明显减弱;鸡胚培养法的结果显示,NAC明显抑制了流感病毒H1N1在鸡胚内的增殖,实验组血凝效价低于1：2,对照组血凝效价为1：1024;神经氨酸酶活性抑制试验和透射电镜的结果显示,NAC能够明显抑制流感病毒川N1的神经氨酸酶活性,对流感病毒H1N1的病毒体结构也有明显的破坏作用。结论NAC在体外对流感病毒川N1有明显的抑制作用,其抑制机制可能与NAC对流感病毒血凝素和神经氨酸酶活性抑制及病毒体的直接破坏有关。