Specific binding sites for a parvovirus, minute virus of mice, on cultured mouse cells.

The early interactions between parvoviruses and host cells have not been extensively described previously. In this study we have characterized some aspects of viral binding to the cell surface and demonstrated the existence of specific cellular receptor sites for minute virus of mice (MVM) on two murine cell lines that are permissive for viral growth. The interaction had a pH optimum of 7.0 to 7.2, and both the rate and extent of the reactions were slightly affected by temperature. Mouse A-9 cells (L-cell derivative) had approximately 5 X 10(5) specific MVM binding sites per cell, and Friend erythroleukemia cells had 1.5 X 10(5) MVM sites per cell. In contrast, the nonpermissive mouse lymphoid cell line L1210 lacked specific viral receptors. Also, cloned lines of A-9 cells resistant to viral infection have been isolated. One of these lines lacked the "specific" virus attachment sites but exhibited low levels of nonsaturable virus binding. Based on these examples, infectivity is correlated with the presence of specific viral receptors on the cell surface.     

Phosphorylation of the pro-apoptotic protein BIK: mapping of phosphorylation sites and effect on apoptosis

BIK is a pro-apoptotic BCL-2 family member and is the founding member of a subfamily of pro-apoptotic proteins known as "BH3-alone" proteins. Ectopic expression of BIK induces apoptosis in variety of mammalian cells. BIK complexes with various anti-apoptotic BCL-2 family proteins such as adenovirus E1B-19K and BCL-2 via the BH3 domain. However, the heterodimerization activity of BIK alone is insufficient for its apoptotic activity. Previous studies have shown that phosphorylation regulates the functional activity of both anti-apoptotic and pro-apoptotic members of the BCL-2 family. Here, we have examined phosphorylation of BIK and its effect on the apoptotic activity of BIK. We show that BIK exists as a phosphoprotein and is phosphorylated at residues 33 (threonine) and 35 (serine). Mutation of the phosphorylation sites, in which the Thr and Ser residues were changed to alanine residues, reduced the apoptotic activity of BIK without significantly affecting its ability to heterodimerize with BCL-2. Our results suggest that phosphorylation of BIK is required for eliciting efficient apoptotic activity. Partial purification of the protein kinase from HeLa cell cytoplasmic extracts suggest that BIK may be phosphorylated by a casein kinase II-related enzyme.     

Characterization of an immunosuppressive parvovirus related to the minute virus of mice.

We have characterized an immunosuppressive parvovirus related to the minute virus of mice (MVM). The parvovirus, MVM(i), grew efficiently on the murine lymphoma cell line EL-4 and not on the A-9 strain of L-cells which is a host for the prototype MVM. MVM(i) was immunosuppressive for allogeneic mixed leukocyte cultures, inhibiting the generation of cytolytic T lymphocytes. MVM had no effect on mixed leukocyte cultures. MVM and MVM(i) particles were similar in buoyant density, sedimentation rate, appearance in the electron microscope, and polypeptide composition. We present restriction enzyme maps of the DNAs of MVM and MVM(i) which show that they are closely related. Out of 109 restriction endonuclease cleavage sites (representing together about 10% of the nucleotide sequence), 86 sites were shared by MVM and MVM(i), whereas 22 sites were absent from one of the two viruses. MVM(i) DNA had an apparent deletion of about 60 nucleotides relative to MVM, located near the 5' terminus of viral DNA.     

Construction of an infectious molecular clone of the autonomous parvovirus minute virus of mice.

The linear single-stranded DNA genome of minute virus of mice, an autonomous parvovirus, was cloned in duplex form into the bacterial plasmid pBR322. The recombinant clones of minute virus of mice were infectious when transfected into monolayers of human 324K cells and produced virus plaques with an efficiency of about 6% that obtained with duplex replicative-form DNA purified from cells infected with minute virus of mice. Southern blot analysis of transfected cells indicated that the cloned minute virus of mice genome requires both termini to be intact for excision and replication as a linear duplex molecule.     

Replication initiator protein NS1 of the parvovirus minute virus of mice binds to modular divergent sites distributed throughout duplex viral DNA

To initiate DNA synthesis, the NS1 protein of minute virus of mice (MVM) first binds to a simple cognate recognition sequence in the viral origins, comprising two to three tandem copies of the tetranucleotide TGGT. However, this motif is also widely dispersed throughout the viral genome. Using an immunoselection procedure, we show that NS1 specifically binds to many internal sites, so that all viral fragments of more than ~170 nucleotides effectively compete for NS1, often binding with higher affinity to these internal sites than to sites in the origins. We explore the diversity of the internal sites using competitive binding and DNase I protection assays and show that they vary between two extreme forms. Simple sites with three somewhat degenerate, tandem TGGT reiterations bind effectively but are minimally responsive to ATP, while complex sites, containing multiple variably spaced TGGT elements arranged as opposing clusters, bind NS1 with an affinity that can be enhanced ~10-fold by ATP. Using immuno-selection procedures with randomized sequences embedded within specific regions of the genome, we explore possible binding configurations in these two types of site. We conclude that binding is modular, combinatorial, and highly flexible. NS1 recognizes two to six variably spaced, more-or-less degenerate forms of the 5′-TGGT-3′ motif, so that it binds efficiently to a wide variety of sequences. Thus, despite complex coding constraints, binding sites are configured at frequent intervals throughout duplex forms of viral DNA, suggesting that NS1 may serve as a form of chromatin to protect and tailor the environment of replicating genomes.     

Structural determinants of tissue tropism and in vivo pathogenicity for the parvovirus minute virus of mice

Two strains of the parvovirus minute virus of mice (MVM), the immunosuppressive (MVMi) and the prototype (MVMp) strains, display disparate in vitro tropism and in vivo pathogenicity. We report the crystal structures of MVMp virus-like particles (MVMp(b)) and native wild-type (wt) empty capsids (MVMp(e)), determined and refined to 3.25 and 3.75 A resolution, respectively, and their comparison to the structure of MVMi, also refined to 3.5 A resolution in this study. A comparison of the MVMp(b) and MVMp(e) capsids showed their structures to be the same, providing structural verification that some heterologously expressed parvovirus capsids are indistinguishable from wt capsids produced in host cells. The structures of MVMi and MVMp capsids were almost identical, but local surface conformational differences clustered from symmetry-related capsid proteins at three specific domains: (i) the icosahedral fivefold axis, (ii) the "shoulder" of the protrusion at the icosahedral threefold axis, and (iii) the area surrounding the depression at the icosahedral twofold axis. The latter two domains contain important determinants of MVM in vitro tropism (residues 317 and 321) and forward mutation residues (residues 399, 460, 553, and 558) conferring fibrotropism on MVMi. Furthermore, these structural differences between the MVM strains colocalize with tropism and pathogenicity determinants mapped for other autonomous parvovirus capsids, highlighting the importance of common parvovirus capsid regions in the control of virus-host interactions.     

Mapping of the fibrotropic and lymphotropic host range determinants of the parvovirus minute virus of mice.

The fibrotropic and lymphotropic strains of minute virus of mice are each unable to grow lytically in the differentiated host cell type of the other strain. To map the viral sequence responsible for the target cell specificities of the two strains, we constructed chimeric viral genomes in vitro from infectious genomic clones. The phenotypes of viral progeny derived from the chimeric genomes were tested by transfecting the plasmids into fibroblast monolayers and assaying plaque formation and by testing stocks of the recombinant viruses for cytotoxicity in fibroblast and lymphocyte cultures. Both the fibrotropic and lymphotropic determinants mapped to the same 237-nucleotide sequence within the coding region of the virus structural gene. A second sequence, near the viral promoter at map unit 38, was also shown to affect viral growth in fibroblast host cells profoundly.     

Intracellular DNA of the parvovirus minute virus of mice is organized in a minichromosome structure.

Minute virus of mice (MVM) nucleoprotein complexes were leached from infected cell nuclei in the presence of a hypotonic buffer. Detailed biochemical analyses performed on the extracted complexes revealed nucleoprotein complexes sedimenting together with virions at 110S and defective particles sedimenting at 50S. In contrast to the virions, the nucleoprotein complexes were found to be sensitive to treatment with DNase, Sarkosyl, and heparin. They were found to be composed of replicative forms of MVM DNA and cellular histones. After extensive micrococcal nuclease digestion performed on purified nucleoprotein complexes, a viral nucleosomes core containing a DNA segment of about 140 base pairs in length was identified. These complexes when visualized by electron microscopy revealed the existence of beaded structures (minichromosomes) having 26 and 52 beads per monomer and dimer molecules, respectively. We suggest that the organization of the intracellular viral DNA in a minichromosome structure is an essential step in the virus growth cycle.     

Myeloid depression follows infection of susceptible newborn mice with the parvovirus minute virus of mice (strain i).

The in vivo myelosuppressive capacity of strain i of the parovirus minute virus of mice (MVMi) was investigated in newborn BALB/c mice inoculated with a lethal intranasal dose. MVMi infection reached maximum levels of DNA synthesis and infectious titers in lymphohemopoietic organs at 4 to 6 days postinoculation and was restricted by an early neutralizing humoral immune response. After viral control (by 10 days postinoculation), a significant decrease in femoral and splenic cellularity, as well as in granulocyte-macrophage colony-forming unit and erythroid burst-forming unit hemopoietic progenitors, was observed in most inoculated animals. This delayed myeloid depression, although it may be not a major cause of the lethality of the infection, implies indirect pathogenic mechanisms induced by MVMi infection in a susceptible host.     

Evidence for a ligation step in the DNA replication of the autonomous parvovirus minute virus of mice

Newly replicated DNA of the autonomous parvovirus minute virus of mice was pulse-labeled with 32PO4 during the time of maximal viral DNA replication in highly synchronized A9 cells. The subsequent processing of viral DNA-protein complexes was monitored during a chase period with no label. Several distinct classes of duplex replicative-form and progeny single-stranded DNA molecules were characterized and found to accumulate at different times during infection. Analysis of the terminal structures associated with these various forms provided new insights into the mechanism by which viral DNA replicates and, in particular, suggested that interstrand ligation occurs during this process.     

DNA sequence comparison between two tissue-specific variants of the autonomous parvovirus, minute virus of mice.

We have determined the complete nucleotide sequence of the DNA of the immunosuppressive variant of the parvovirus minute virus of mice (MVMi) and compared it to the published sequence (12) of the fibroblast-specific strain (MVMp). We have found 175 differences between the two viruses, most of which affect single nucleotides. Despite these differences, the genomic organization of MVMp and MVMi is identical. There are 29 amino-acid changes between the putative viral gene products of MVMi and MVMp, 16 of which are conservative. We discuss the possibility that the differential tissue-specificity of the two variants is linked to differences within the non-transcribed region near the 5' end of the viral genomes.     

Chromosomal integration and homologous gene targeting by replication-incompetent vectors based on the autonomous parvovirus minute virus of mice

The molecular mechanisms responsible for random integration and gene targeting by recombinant adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors are largely unknown, and whether vectors derived from autonomous parvoviruses transduce cells by similar pathways has not been investigated. In this report, we constructed vectors based on the autonomous parvovirus minute virus of mice (MVM) that were designed to introduce a neomycin resistance expression cassette (neo) into the X-linked human hypoxanthine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT) locus. High-titer, replication-incompetent MVM vector stocks were generated with a two-plasmid transfection system that preserved the wild-type characteristic of packaging only one DNA strand. Vectors with inserts in the forward or reverse orientations packaged noncoding or coding strands, respectively. In human HT-1080 cells, MVM vector random integration frequencies (neo(+) colonies) were comparable to those obtained with AAV vectors, and no difference was observed for noncoding and coding strands. HPRT gene-targeting frequencies (HPRT mutant colonies) were lower with MVM vectors, and the noncoding strand frequency was threefold greater than that of the coding strand. Random integration and gene-targeting events were confirmed by Southern blot analysis of G418- and 6-thioguanine (6TG)-resistant clones. In separate experiments, correction of an alkaline phosphatase (AP) gene by gene targeting was nine times more effective with a coding strand vector. The data suggest that single-stranded parvoviral vector genomes are substrates for gene targeting and possibly for random integration as well.     

CRM1 mediates nuclear export of nonstructural protein 2 from parvovirus minute virus of mice.

The nonstructural protein 2 (NS2) from parvovirus minute virus of mice (MVMp) is a 25-kDa polypeptide which localizes preferentially to the cytoplasm and associates with cellular proteins in cytoplasm. These lines of evidence suggest that NS2 is positively exported from the nucleus to cytoplasm and functions in cytoplasm. We report here that nuclear export of NS2 is inhibited by leptomycin B (LMB), a drug that specifically blocks nuclear export signal (NES)-chromosomal region maintenance 1 (CRM1) interactions. CRM1 binds specifically to the 81- to 106-amino-acid (aa) region of NS2, and the region of NS2 actually functions as a NES. Interestingly, this region appears to be distinct from a typical NES sequence, which consists of leucine-rich sequences. These results indicate that NS2 protein is continuously exported from the nucleus by a CRM1-dependent mechanism and suggest that CRM1 also exports to distinct type of NESs.     

Segregation of a single outboard left-end origin is essential for the viability of parvovirus minute virus of mice

During DNA replication, the hairpin telomeres of Minute Virus of Mice (MVM) are extended and copied to create imperfectly palindromic duplex junction sequences that bridge adjacent genomes in concatameric replicative-form DNA. These are resolved by the viral initiator protein, NS1, but mechanisms employed at the two telomeres differ. Left-end:left-end junctions are resolved asymmetrically at a single site, OriLTC, by NS1 acting in concert with a host factor, parvovirus initiation factor (PIF). Replication segregates doublet and triplet sequences, initially present as unpaired nucleotides in the bubble region of the left-end hairpin stem, to either side of the junction. These act as spacers between the NS1 and PIF binding sites, and their asymmetric distribution sets up active (OriLTC) and inactive (OriLGAA) forms of OriL. We used a reverse genetic approach to disrupt this asymmetry and found that neither opposing doublets nor triplets in the hairpin bubble were tolerated. Viable mutants were isolated at low frequency and found to contain second-site mutations that either restored the asymmetry or crippled one PIF binding site. These mutations either inactivated the inboard or activated the outboard form of OriL, a polarity that strongly suggests that, in the genus Parvovirus, an active inboard OriL is lethal.     

Kinetics of assembly of a parvovirus, minute virus of mice, in synchronized rat brain cells

The rates of assembly of the three classes of particles of minute virus of mice were examined in synchronized rat brain cells by a combination of electron microscopy and biochemical techniques. We observed a burst of virus assembly beginning about 8 h after the end of cellular S phase. Labeled thymidine incorporated into the 1.46 g/cm3 class of full virus particles was transferred almost quantitatively to the 1.42 g/cm3 class. The 1.46 g/cm3 virus appeared to be an immediate precursor to the 1.42 g/cm3 class. Conversion of the 1.46 density virus to the 1.42 density particles was observed at the time of virus assembly. The processing was rapid and occurred primarily in the nucleus. Infected cells did not contain significant pools of viral DNA in a form that could be encapsulated in the absence of DNA synthesis. The role of the empty virus capsids in the assembly process is discussed.