RhoA Interacts with the Fusion Glycoprotein of Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Facilitates Virus-Induced Syncytium Formation

The fusion glycoprotein (F) of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which mediates membrane fusion and virus entry, was shown to bind RhoA, a small GTPase, in yeast two-hybrid interaction studies. The interaction was confirmed in vivo by mammalian two-hybrid assay and in RSV-infected HEp-2 cells by coimmunoprecipitation. Furthermore, the interaction of F with RhoA was confirmed in vitro by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and biomolecular interaction analysis. Yeast two-hybrid interaction studies with various deletion mutants of F and with RhoA indicate that the key binding domains of these proteins are contained within, or overlap, amino acids 146 to 155 and 67 to 110, respectively. The biological significance of this interaction was studied in RSV-infected HEp-2 cells that were stably transfected to overexpress RhoA. There was a positive correlation between RhoA expression and RSV syncytium formation, indicating that RhoA can facilitate RSV-induced syncytium formation.     

Respiratory Syncytial Virus Fusion Protein Mediates Inhibition of Mitogen-Induced T-Cell Proliferation by Contact

Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) and bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) are major pathogens in infants and calves, respectively. Experimental BRSV infection of calves and lambs is associated with lymphopenia and a reduction in responsiveness of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) to mitogens ex vivo. In this report, we show that in vitro mitogen-induced proliferation of PBLs is inhibited after contact with RSV-infected and UV-inactivated cells or with cells expressing RSV envelope proteins on the cell surface. The protein responsible was identified as the RSV fusion protein (F), as cells infected with a recombinant RSV expressing F as the single envelope protein or cells transfected with a plasmid encoding F were able to induce this effect. Thus, direct contact with RSV F is necessary and sufficient to inhibit proliferation of PBLs. Interestingly, F derived from HRSV was more efficient in inhibiting human PBL proliferation, while F from BRSV was more efficient in inhibiting bovine PBLs. Since various T-cell activation markers were upregulated after presenter cell contact, T lymphocytes are viable and may still be activated by mitogen. However, a significant fraction of PBLs were delayed or defective in G0/G1 to S-phase transit.     

The Respiratory Syncytial Virus Matrix Protein Possesses a Crm1-Mediated Nuclear Export Mechanism

The respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) matrix (M) protein is localized in the nucleus of infected cells early in infection but is mostly cytoplasmic late in infection. We have previously shown that M localizes in the nucleus through the action of the importin β1 nuclear import receptor. Here, we establish for the first time that M''s ability to shuttle to the cytoplasm is due to the action of the nuclear export receptor Crm1, as shown in infected cells, and in cells transfected to express green fluorescent protein (GFP)-M fusion proteins. Specific inhibition of Crm1-mediated nuclear export by leptomycin B increased M nuclear accumulation. Analysis of truncated and point-mutated M derivatives indicated that Crm1-dependent nuclear export of M is attributable to a nuclear export signal (NES) within residues 194 to 206. Importantly, inhibition of M nuclear export resulted in reduced virus production, and a recombinant RSV carrying a mutated NES could not be rescued by reverse genetics. That this is likely to be due to the inability of a nuclear export deficient M to localize to regions of virus assembly is indicated by the fact that a nuclear-export-deficient GFP-M fails to localize to regions of virus assembly when expressed in cells infected with wild-type RSV. Together, our data suggest that Crm1-dependent nuclear export of M is central to RSV infection, representing the first report of such a mechanism for a paramyxovirus M protein and with important implications for related paramyxoviruses.The Pneumovirus respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) within the Paramyxoviridae family is the most common cause of lower-respiratory-tract disease in infants (7). The negative-sense single-strand RNA genome of RSV encodes two nonstructural and nine structural proteins, comprising the envelope glycoproteins (F, G, and SH), the nucleocapsid proteins (N, P, and L), the nucleocapsid-associated proteins (M2-1 and M2-2), and the matrix (M) protein (1, 7, 11). Previously, we have shown that M protein localizes in the nucleus at early stages of infection, but later in infection it is localized mainly in the cytoplasm, in association with nucleocapsid-containing cytoplasmic inclusions (13, 16). The M proteins of other negative-strand viruses, such as Sendai virus, Newcastle disease virus, and vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), have also been observed in the nucleus at early stages of infection (32, 40, 48). Interestingly, the M proteins of all of these viruses, including RSV, play major roles in virus assembly, which take place in the cytoplasm and at the cell membrane (11, 12, 24, 34, 36, 39), but the mechanisms by which trafficking between the nucleus and cytoplasm occurs are unknown.The importin β family member Crm1 (exportin 1) is known to mediate nuclear export of proteins bearing leucine-rich nuclear export signals (NES) (8, 9, 18, 19, 37, 42, 43), such as the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Rev protein (4). In the case of the influenza virus matrix (M1) protein, binding to the influenza virus nuclear export protein, which possesses a Crm1-recognized NES, appears to be responsible for its export from the nucleus, bound to the influenza virus RNA (3).We have recently shown that RSV M localizes in the nucleus through a conventional nuclear import pathway dependent on the nuclear import receptor importin β1 (IMPβ1) and the guanine nucleotide-binding protein Ran (14). In the present study, we show for the first time that RSV M possesses a Crm1-dependent nuclear export pathway, based on experiments using the specific inhibitor leptomycin B (LMB) (25), both in RSV-infected cells and in green fluorescent protein (GFP)-M fusion protein-expressing transfected cells. We use truncated and point-mutated M derivatives to map the Crm1-recognized NES within the M sequence and show that Crm1-dependent nuclear export is critical to the RSV infectious cycle, since LMB treatment early in infection, inhibiting M export from the nucleus, reduces RSV virion production and a recombinant RSV carrying a NES mutation in M was unable to replicate, probably because M deficient in nuclear export could not localize to areas of virus assembly, as shown in RSV-infected cells transfected to express GFP-M. This is the first report of a Crm1-mediated nuclear export pathway for a paramyxovirus M protein, with implications for the trafficking and function of other paramyxovirus M proteins.     

抗呼吸道合胞病毒融合蛋白单链抗体的筛选及初步鉴定

目的：从大容量噬菌体抗体库中筛选人源性抗呼吸道合胞病毒F蛋白的单链抗体。方法：以RSV F蛋白为靶抗原,通过“吸附-洗涤-洗脱-扩增”过程从天然人源性噬菌体抗体库中筛选特异性抗F蛋白单链抗体。5轮筛选后,单克隆经ELISA检测,阳性克隆进行核酸序列分析,并将阳性克隆噬菌体感染E.coli HB2151,经IPTG诱导,制备抗RSV F蛋白的可溶性单链抗体,并进行Western及Dot blot分析。结果：经过筛选,获得了18株能与F蛋白特异性结合的阳性克隆,取OD值最高的克隆E4经测序并检索Kabat数据库分析,显示其基因与人免疫球蛋白可变区基因具有高度同源性,Western及Dot blot分析表明为单链抗体。结论：利用天然人源性噬菌体抗体库技术制备出高特异性的人源性抗RSV F蛋白单链抗体。     

Intrapatient Variation of the Respiratory Syncytial Virus Attachment Protein Gene

Intrapatient variability of the attachment (G) protein gene of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was examined using both population and single-genome sequencing. Samples from three patients infected with a group B virus variant which has a 60-nucleotide duplication in the G protein gene were examined. These samples were chosen because occasional mixed sequence bases were observed. In a minority of RSV genomes from these patients considerable variability was found, including point mutations, insertions, and deletions. Of particular note, the deletion of the exact portion of the gene which had been duplicated in some isolates was observed in viral RNAs from two patients.Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major cause of lower respiratory tract infection in infants and vulnerable adults (3, 9) and is unusual in that it can repeatedly reinfect individuals (5, 6). RSV isolates are classified into two groups, A and B, and the attachment (G) protein, a target for neutralizing antibodies, is the most variable of the viral proteins, showing considerable genetic and antigenic variability both within and between the groups (7, 8). The G protein is able to accommodate drastic changes, which have been observed both in culture during the selection of monoclonal antibody escape mutants (4, 12, 13) and in vivo with the emergence of new variants, including a group B strain with a duplication of 60 nucleotides (17). This strain with a 60-nucleotide duplication was first reported from Buenos Aires in 1999 (17) and then was subsequently detected in samples from 1998 in Madrid (16). The strain then became the dominant group B strain worldwide, indicating a selective advantage for this variant (16, 18). Thus, major genetic changes can be introduced into the G gene sequence while the virus replicates in its natural host, which can then be selected under favorable epidemiological conditions.Previous investigations of the genetic diversity of RSV exploited direct sequencing of PCR-amplified products (2), which represent the population average of the in vivo variants. Such sequences are derived from multiple copies of cDNA and represent the dominant sequence, and they thus do not allow detection of minority populations below about 20% prevalence (11). Information on intrapatient viral diversity during infections may therefore be missed, knowledge of which could be important in the overall understanding of the genetic diversity of this virus. We report here the analysis of individual RSV RNA molecules derived by single-genome amplification (SGA) and sequencing from clinical samples using a methodology developed for the analysis of HIV genomes (11, 14).RSV-positive samples were collected from infants admitted to Kilifi District Hospital, Kenya (10). Viral RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis were carried out as previously described (15). For population sequencing, a nested PCR was carried out on the cDNA using primers that amplified the ectodomain-coding part of the G protein gene, with the PCR product being directly sequenced. In the 2007-2008 RSV epidemic in Kilifi, group B viruses were predominant. By population sequencing of ∼100 group B samples, all were found to have the 60-nucleotide duplication observed in the Buenos Aires variant (data not shown). However, in some specimens there were some mixed bases at some positions, so the variability at the level of the single cDNA molecule was further investigated.Three samples that gave occasional mixed signals in the sequence chromatograms were further analyzed by SGA and sequencing. For SGA the cDNAs were serially diluted 3-fold up to 1:6,361. Ten nested PCRs were carried out on each dilution using Platinum high-fidelity PCR Supermix (Invitrogen) (containing Taq polymerase together with the proofreading enzyme Pyrococcus species GB-D polymerase). Based on the Poisson distribution, it has been shown that for a sample dilution yielding approximately 30% positive PCRs there is an 80% likelihood that each PCR is derived from a single cDNA molecule (11). For each of the identified endpoint dilutions, the cDNA was amplified in 80 separate nested PCRs using the high-fidelity enzyme and the positive reaction products sequenced. The nomenclature for the sequences reported in this paper is place of isolation (Kenya [Ken])/year of isolation/strain number. For SGA sequences an additional Roman number is given.The predicted length derived by population sequencing of the G proteins of the three samples examined by SGA was 310 amino acids, showing a 6-nucleotide deletion and a changed stop codon relative to the Buenos Aires strain (Fig. ​(Fig.1).1). The dominant sequences represented 60 to 88% of the sequences derived by SGA. The differences were due to point mutations, duplications, and deletions, as summarized in Table ​Table1;1; the consequences of these changes for the predicted length of the G protein are shown in Table ​Table22.Open in a separate windowFIG. 1.Nucleotide sequence alignment of part of the G protein gene (from nucleotide 400) of the sample 2 population sequence (Ken/08/80900) and a minority sequence (Ken/08/80900/ii), with the sequences of prototype group B strain CH18537 (accession number {"type":"entrez-nucleotide","attrs":{"text":"M17213","term_id":"333942","term_text":"M17213"}}M17213) and Buenos Aires strain BA/3833/99B (accession number {"type":"entrez-nucleotide","attrs":{"text":"AY333362","term_id":"33355616","term_text":"AY333362"}}AY333362). This shows the duplication of 60 nucleotides in the Kenyan and Buenos Aires viruses relative to CH18537 and the loss of the same 60 nucleotides in the Kenyan minority sequence. Termination codons are underlined.

TABLE 1.

Diversity in the SGA-derived sequences

Attempts to Demonstrate Hemagglutination and Hemadsorption by Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Extensive attempts to demonstrate a hemagglutinin of respiratory syncytial virus by both hemagglutination and hemadsorption tests failed. Hemagglutination tests were performed with red blood cells from 12 different animal species and at various temperatures and pH.     

Neutralization of Human Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infectivity by Antibodies and Low-Molecular-Weight Compounds Targeted against the Fusion Glycoprotein

Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV) fusion (F) protein is an essential component of the virus envelope that mediates fusion of the viral and cell membranes, and, therefore, it is an attractive target for drug and vaccine development. Our aim was to analyze the neutralizing mechanism of anti-F antibodies in comparison with other low-molecular-weight compounds targeted against the F molecule. It was found that neutralization by anti-F antibodies is related to epitope specificity. Thus, neutralizing and nonneutralizing antibodies could bind equally well to virions and remained bound after ultracentrifugation of the virus, but only the former inhibited virus infectivity. Neutralization by antibodies correlated with inhibition of cell-cell fusion in a syncytium formation assay, but not with inhibition of virus binding to cells. In contrast, a peptide (residues 478 to 516 of F protein [F478-516]) derived from the F protein heptad repeat B (HRB) or the organic compound BMS-433771 did not interfere with virus infectivity if incubated with virus before ultracentrifugation or during adsorption of virus to cells at 4°C. These inhibitors must be present during virus entry to effect HRSV neutralization. These results are best interpreted by asserting that neutralizing antibodies bind to the F protein in virions interfering with its activation for fusion. Binding of nonneutralizing antibodies is not enough to block this step. In contrast, the peptide F478-516 or BMS-433771 must bind to F protein intermediates generated during virus-cell membrane fusion, blocking further development of this process.Human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV), a member of the Pneumovirus genus of the Paramyxoviridae family, is the main cause of severe lower respiratory tract infections in very young children (36), and it is a pathogen of considerable importance in the elderly (24, 26) and in immunocompromised adults (22). Currently, there is no effective vaccine against the virus although it is known that passive administration of neutralizing antibodies to individuals at high risk is an effective immunoprophylaxis (37, 38).The HRSV genome is a single-stranded negative-sense RNA molecule of approximately 15 kb that encodes 11 proteins (16, 53). Two of these proteins are the main surface glycoproteins of the virion. These are (i) the attachment (G) protein, which mediates virus binding to cells (44), and (ii) the fusion (F) protein, which promotes both fusion of the viral and cell membranes at the initial stages of the infectious cycle and fusion of the membrane of infected cells with those of adjacent cells to form characteristic syncytia (72). These two glycoproteins are the only targets of neutralizing antibodies either induced in animal models (19, 63, 65, 70) or present in human sera (62).The G protein is a highly variable type II glycoprotein that shares neither sequence identity nor structural features with the attachment protein of other paramyxoviruses (75). It is synthesized as a precursor of about 300 amino acids (depending on the strain) that is modified posttranslationally by the addition of a large number of N- and O-linked oligosaccharides and is also palmitoylated (17). The G protein is oligomeric (probably a homotetramer) (23) and promotes binding of HRSV to cell surface proteoglycans (35, 40, 49, 67). Whether this is the only interaction of G with cell surface components is presently unknown.The F protein is a type I glycoprotein that is synthesized as an inactive precursor of 574 amino acids (F0) which is cleaved by furin during transport to the cell surface to yield two disulfide-linked polypeptides, F2 from the N terminus and F1 from the C terminus (18). Like other viral type I fusion proteins, the mature F protein is a homotrimer which is in a prefusion, metastable, conformation in the virus particle. After fusion, the F protein adopts a highly stable postfusion conformation. Stability of the postfusion conformation is determined to great extent by two heptad repeat (HR) sequences, HRA and HRB, present in the F1 chain. Mixtures of HRA and HRB peptides form spontaneously heterotrimeric complexes (43, 51) that assemble in six-helix bundles (6HB), consisting of an internal core of three HRA helices surrounded by three antiparallel HRB helices, as determined by X-ray crystallography (79).The three-dimensional (3D) structure of the HRSV F protein has not been solved yet. Nevertheless, the structures of the pre- and postfusion forms of two paramyxovirus F proteins have revealed substantial conformational differences between the pre- and postfusion conformations (77, 78). The present hypothesis about the mechanism of membrane fusion mediated by paramyxovirus F proteins proposes that, following binding of the virus to the cell surface, the prefusion form of the F glycoprotein is activated, and membrane fusion is triggered. The F protein experiences then a series of conformational changes which include the exposure of a hydrophobic region, called the fusion peptide, and its insertion into the target membrane. Subsequent refolding of this intermediate leads to formation of the HRA and HRB six-helix bundle, concomitant with approximation of the viral and cell membranes that finally fuse, placing the fusion peptide and the transmembrane domain in the same membrane (4, 20). The formation of the 6HB and the associated free energy change are tightly linked to the merger of the viral and cellular membranes (60).Antibodies play a major role in protection against HRSV. Animal studies have demonstrated that immunization with either F or G glycoproteins induces neutralizing antibodies and protects against a viral challenge (19, 63, 70). Furthermore, transfer of these antibodies (31, 56) or of anti-F or anti-G monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) protects mice, cotton rats, or calves against either a human or bovine RSV challenge, respectively (65, 68, 73). Likewise, infants at high risk of severe HRSV disease are protected by the prophylactic administration of immunoglobulins with high anti-HRSV neutralizing titers (33). Finally, a positive correlation was found between high titers of serum neutralizing antibodies and protection in adult volunteers challenged with HRSV (34, 74), while an inverse correlation was found between high titers of neutralizing antibodies and risk of infection in children (29) and in the elderly (25).Whereas all the anti-G monoclonal antibodies reported to date are poorly neutralizing (1, 28, 48, 71), some anti-F monoclonal antibodies have strong neutralization activity (1, 3, 5, 28, 46). It is believed that HRSV neutralization by anti-G antibodies requires simultaneous binding of several antibodies to different epitopes, leading to steric hindrance for interaction of the G glycoprotein with the cell surface. Indeed, it has been shown that neutralization is enhanced by mixtures of anti-G monoclonal antibodies (1, 50), mimicking the effect of polyclonal anti-G antibodies. In contrast, highly neutralizing anti-F monoclonal antibodies do not require cooperation by other antibodies to block HRSV infectivity efficiently (1).In addition to neutralizing antibodies, other low-molecular-weight compounds directed against the F protein are potent inhibitors of HRSV infectivity. Synthetic peptides that reproduce sequences of heptad repeat B inhibit both membrane fusion promoted by the F protein and HRSV infectivity (42). Also, other small molecules obtained by chemical synthesis have been shown to interact with F protein and inhibit HRSV infectivity. These HRSV entry inhibitors have been the topic of intense research in recent years (55).This study explores the mechanisms of HRSV neutralization by different inhibitors of membrane fusion, including anti-F monoclonal antibodies, an HRB peptide, and the synthetic compound BMS-433771 (13-15). The results obtained indicate that antibodies and low-molecular-weight compounds block membrane fusion at different stages during virus entry.     

重组呼吸道合胞病毒G蛋白疫苗的免疫安全性研究

将呼吸道合胞病毒(respiratory syncytical virus,RSV)G蛋白与CpG佐剂共同免疫小鼠,分析RSV G蛋白免疫原性及安全性。前期纯化的G_(CX3C)和G_(CTL)两种蛋白分别与CpG佐剂混合,在0、2、4周以肌肉注射方式免疫昆明小鼠,免疫结束后检测小鼠肺部匀浆液中的IFN-γ、IL-4及Ig E等指标。同时末次免疫结束后,小鼠用滴度105pfu的RSV进行攻毒,解剖分离小鼠肺部,制备病理切片进行观察。G_(CTL)蛋白免疫组肺部匀浆液中的IL-4以及IgE低于G_(CX3C)蛋白免疫组。CpG组及GCTL+CpG组肺组织匀浆液中的INF-γ含量以及INF-γ/IL-4比值显著高于其他组(P0.05),且ELISPOT实验表明CpG佐剂能够促使分泌INF-γ的脾淋巴细胞数量增多。攻毒后,通过肺部组织切片观察,发现PBS和CpG免疫组肺部病变极为严重,G_(CTL)+CpG组的病变程度比G_(CX3C)+CpG组严重,而G_(CX3C)组的病变情况比G_(CTL)组严重。这些结果表明,重组G_(CTL)蛋白能够降低动物免疫应答的Th2型极化,具有良好的安全性。     

Induction of Potent Neutralizing Antibody Responses by a Designed Protein Nanoparticle Vaccine for Respiratory Syncytial Virus

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呼吸道合胞病毒融合抑制活性单克隆抗体的鉴定及应用

用杂交瘤技术制备了抗呼吸道合胞病毒 (RSV Long株 )的单克隆抗体F3细胞株。经IFA及ELISA证明 ,F3株McAb对RSV抗原特异 ,具中和活性及融合抑制活性 ,其腹水中和效价和融合抑制效价分别为 1∶12 8和 1∶6 4。将F3株McAb与商售混合单抗试剂盒进行临床诊断比较 ,二者阳性符合率 96 .9% ,阴性符合率 10 0 %。     

功率超声方法对蛋白质包涵体的解聚

用低频功率超声波辐照方法,实现了在低浓度变性剂(4mol/L尿素)中对大肠杆菌体系表达产物缩短的人巨噬细胞集落刺激因子(hM-CSF)包涵体的解聚,以期改进普遍采用的强烈变性剂(8mol/L尿素)溶解包涵体方法,超声处理后的SDS-PAGE在分子量17000上显示了与8mol/L尿素溶解结果相同的条带.表现出功率超声方法在基因工程包涵体解聚中的应用前景.