Structure function studies on different structural domains of nucleoprotein of H1N1 subtype

Recent 2009 flu pandemic is a global outbreak of a new strain of influenza A virus subtype H1N1. The H1N1 virus has crossed species barrier to human and apparently acquired the capability to transmit this disease from human to human. The NP is a multifunctional protein that not only encapsidates viral RNA (vRNA), but also forms homo-oligomer and thereby maintains RNP structure. It is also thought to be the key adaptor for virus and host cell interaction. Thus, it is one of the factor that play a key role in the pathogenesis of influenza A virus infection. Therefore, to understand the cause of pathogenicity of H1N1 virus, we have studied the structure-function relationship of different domains of NP. Our results showed that conservative mutation in NP of various strains were pathogenic in nature. However, non-conservative mutation slightly abrogated oligomerization and was therefore less pathogenic. Our results also suggest that beside tail and body domain, head domain may also participate in an oligomerization process.     

A型流感病毒NS1蛋白羧基端PL结构域影响NS1在细胞核内的定位

A型流感病毒NS1蛋白羧基端4个氨基酸可以与PDZ结构域(the domain of PSD95,Dig and ZO-1)相结合,称为PL结构域(PDZ ligand domain)．对不同亚型或毒株的流感病毒而言,其NS1蛋白PL结构域的组成存在比较大的差异．有研究发现这种差异能够影响NS1与宿主细胞蛋白的相互作用进而影响病毒的致病力．为进一步探讨PL结构域对NS1蛋白生物学特性的影响,首先构建出4种不同亚型流感病毒(H1N1、H3N2、H5N1、H9N2)来源的NS1绿色荧光蛋白表达质粒．在此基础上,对野生型H3N2病毒NS1表达质粒进行人工改造,将其PL结构域缺失或者替换为其他亚型流感病毒的PL结构域,制备出4种重组NS1蛋白表达质粒．通过比较上述不同NS1蛋白在HeLa细胞中的定位情况发现,只有野生型H3N2病毒的NS1蛋白可以定位于核仁当中,而野生型H1N1、H5N1、H9N2病毒的NS1蛋白以及PL结构域缺失或替代的H3N2病毒NS1蛋白都不能定位于核仁．而通过比较上述NS1蛋白在流感病毒易感的MDCK细胞中的定位,进一步发现所有这些蛋白均不定位于核仁．上述结果表明：PL结构域的不同可以明显影响NS1蛋白在HeLa细胞核内的定位和分布,这有可能造成其生物学功能的差异．同时,NS1蛋白在细胞核内的定位还与宿主细胞的来源有着密切关系．     

The role of nuclear NS1 protein in highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza viruses

The non-structural protein (NS1) of influenza A viruses (IAV) performs multiple functions during viral infection. NS1 contains two nuclear localization signals (NLS): NLS1 and NLS2. The NS1 protein is located predominantly in the nucleus during the early stages of infection and subsequently exported to the cytoplasm. A nonsense mutation that results in a large deletion in the carboxy-terminal region of the NS1 protein that contains the NLS2 domain was found in some IAV subtypes, including highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H7N9 and H5N1 viruses. We introduced different mutations into the NLS domains of NS1 proteins in various strains of IAV, and demonstrated that mutation of the NLS2 region in the NS1 protein of HPAI H5N1 viruses severely affects its nuclear localization pattern. H5N1 viruses expressing NS1 protein that is unable to localize to the nucleus are less potent in antagonizing cellular antiviral responses than viruses expressing wild-type NS1. However, no significant difference was observed with respect to viral replication and pathogenesis. In contrast, the replication and antiviral defenses of H1N1 viruses are greatly attenuated when nuclear localization of the NS1 protein is blocked. Our data reveals a novel functional plasticity for NS1 proteins among different IAV subtypes.     

H7N9亚型禽流感病毒非结构蛋白1(NS1)基因序列分析及2013上海分离株NS1的原核表达

目的:对2013年3月发生的感染人的新型H7N9亚型禽流感病毒的非结构蛋白1(NS1)基因序列进行同源性分析,构建NS1重组质粒并表达。方法:从GenBank获得2006~2013年不同来源的H7N9亚型病毒NS1序列,并进行同源性比较;利用PCR方法从H7N9亚型禽流感病毒株A/Shanghai/4664T/2013(H7N9)基因组cDNA中扩增得到全长NS1基因,并将该片段定向克隆到原核表达载体pET28a上,构建重组质粒pET28a-NS1,经酶切鉴定,将重组质粒转化大肠杆菌BL21(DE3)感受态细胞后,IPTG诱导表达,且进行Western印迹分析。结果:经序列分析,2013年暴发的H7N9型禽流感病毒的NS1基因核苷酸序列同源性为95%~100%,与之前暴发的H7N9型流感病毒NS1基因序列的同源性为86.4%~90.7%,表明2次暴发的该型流感分离株属于不同的进化分支;PCR扩增得到约680 bp的NS1基因序列,所克隆的NS1基因在原核细胞中的表达产物主要以包涵体形式存在,SDS-PAGE检测结果表明重组蛋白相对分子质量为25×103,Western印迹分析证实表达产物为H7N9禽流感病毒NS1蛋白。结论:为进一步研究H7N9亚型流感病毒NS1蛋白功能及基于NS1蛋白的抗病毒药物奠定了基础。     

Differential effects of NS1 proteins of human pandemic H1N1/2009, avian highly pathogenic H5N1, and low pathogenic H5N2 influenza A viruses on cellular pre-mRNA polyadenylation and mRNA translation

The nonstructural protein NS1 of influenza A virus blocks the development of host antiviral responses by inhibiting polyadenylation of cellular pre-mRNA. NS1 also promotes the synthesis of viral proteins by stimulating mRNA translation. Here, we show that recombinant NS1 proteins of human pandemic H1N1/2009, avian highly pathogenic H5N1, and low pathogenic H5N2 influenza strains differentially affected these two cellular processes: NS1 of the two avian strains, in contrast to NS1 of H1N1/2009, stimulated translation of reporter mRNA in cell-free translation system; NS1 of H5N1 was an effective inhibitor of cellular pre-mRNA polyadenylation in A549 cells, unlike NS1 of H5N2 and H1N1/2009. We identified key amino acids in NS1 that contribute to its activity in these two basic cellular processes. Thus, we identified strain-specific differences between influenza virus NS1 proteins in pre-mRNA polyadenylation and mRNA translation.     

Development of recombinant hepatitis C virus with NS5A from strains of genotypes 1 and 2

Nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A) of hepatitis C virus (HCV) plays multiple and diverse roles in the viral lifecycle, and is currently recognized as a novel target for anti-viral therapy. To establish an HCV cell culture system with NS5A of various strains, recombinant viruses were generated by replacing NS5A of strain JFH-1 with those of strains of genotypes 1 (H77; 1a and Con1; 1b) and 2 (J6CF; 2a and MA; 2b). All these recombinant viruses were capable of replication and infectious virus production. The replacement of JFH-1 NS5A with those of genotype 1 strains resulted in similar or slightly reduced virus production, whereas replacement with those of genotype 2 strains enhanced virus production as compared with JFH-1 wild-type. A single cycle virus production assay with a CD81-negative cell line revealed that the efficient virus production elicited by replacement with genotype 2 strains depended on enhanced viral assembly, and that substitutions in the C-terminus of NS5A were responsible for this phenotype. Pulse-chase assays revealed that these substitutions in the C-terminus of NS5A were possibly associated with accelerated cleavage kinetics at the NS5A–NS5B site. Using this cell culture system with NS5A-substituted recombinant viruses, the anti-viral effects of an NS5A inhibitor were then examined. A 300- to 1000-fold difference in susceptibility to the inhibitor was found between strains of genotypes 1 and 2. This system will facilitate not only a better understanding of strain-specific roles of NS5A in the HCV lifecycle, but also enable the evaluation of genotype and strain dependency of NS5A inhibitors.     

The PDZ-binding motif of the avian NS1 protein affects transmission of the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) virus

By nature of their segmented RNA genome, influenza A viruses (IAVs) have the potential to generate variants through a reassortment process. The influenza nonstructural (NS) gene is critical for a virus to counteract the antiviral responses of the host. Therefore, a newly acquired NS segment potentially determines the replication efficiency of the reassortant virus in a range of different hosts. In addition, the C-terminal PDZ-binding motif (PBM) has been suggested as a pathogenic determinant of IAVs. To gauge the pandemic potential from human and avian IAV reassortment, we assessed the replication properties of NS-reassorted viruses in cultured cells and in the lungs of mice and determined their transmissibility in guinea pigs. Compared with the recombinant A/Korea/01/2009 virus (rK09; 2009 pandemic H1N1 strain), the rK09/VN:NS virus, in which the NS gene was adopted from the A/Vietnam/1203/2004 virus (a human isolate of the highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 virus strains), exhibited attenuated virulence and reduced transmissibility. However, the rK09/VN:NS-PBM virus, harboring the PBM in the C-terminus of the NS1 protein, recovered the attenuated virulence of the rK09/VN:NS virus. In a guinea pig model, the rK09/VN:NS-PBM virus showed even greater transmission efficiency than the rK/09 virus. These results suggest that the PBM in the NS1 protein may determine viral persistence in the human and avian IAV interface.     

NS1-binding protein abrogates the elevation of cell viability by the influenza A virus NS1 protein in association with CRKL

The influenza A virus non-structural protein 1 (NS1) is a multifunctional virulence factor consisting of an RNA binding domain and several Src-homology (SH) 2 and SH3 binding motifs, which promotes virus replication in the host cell and helps to evade antiviral immunity. NS1 modulates general host cell physiology in association with various cellular molecules including NS1-binding protein (NS1-BP) and signaling adapter protein CRK-like (CRKL), while the physiological role of NS1-BP during influenza A virus infection especially in association with NS1 remains unclear. In this study, we analyzed the intracellular association of NS1-BP, NS1 and CRKL to elucidate the physiological roles of these molecules in the host cell. In HEK293T cells, enforced expression of NS1 of A/Beijing (H1N1) and A/Indonesia (H5N1) significantly induced excessive phosphorylation of ERK and elevated cell viability, while the over-expression of NS1-BP and the abrogation of CRKL using siRNA abolished such survival effect of NS1. The pull-down assay using GST-fusion CRKL revealed the formation of intracellular complexes of NS1-BP, NS1 and CRKL. In addition, we identified that the N-terminus SH3 domain of CRKL was essential for binding to NS1-BP using GST-fusion CRKL-truncate mutants. This is the first report to elucidate the novel function of NS1-BP collaborating with viral protein NS1 in modulation of host cell physiology. In addition, an alternative role of adaptor protein CRKL in association with NS1 and NS1-BP during influenza A virus infection is demonstrated.     

Inhibition of highly pathogenic avian H5N1 influenza virus replication by RNA oligonucleotides targeting NS1 gene

H5N1 avian influenza virus (AIV) has caused widespread infections in poultry and wild birds, and has the potential to emerge as a pandemic threat to human. In order to explore novel approaches to inhibiting highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus infection, we have developed short RNA oligonucleotides, specific for conserved regions of the non-structural protein gene (NS1) of AIV. In vitro the hemagglutination (HA) titers in RNA oligonucleotide-treated cells were at least 5-fold lower than that of the control. In vivo, the treatment with three doses of RNA oligonucleotides protected the infected chickens from H5N1 virus-induced death at a rate of up to 87.5%. Plaque assay and real-time PCR analysis showed a significant reduction of the PFU and viral RNA level in the lung tissues of the infected animals treated with the mixed RNA oligonucleotides targeting the NS1 gene. Together, our findings revealed that the RNA oligonucleotides targeting at the AIV NS1 gene could potently inhibit avian H5N1 influenza virus reproduction and present a rationale for the further development of the RNA oligonucleotides as prophylaxis and therapy for highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus infection in humans.     

人H5N1亚型禽流感病毒安徽株NS1基因的克隆及在原核系统的表达

利用RT-PCR方法,从人H5N1亚型禽流感病毒安徽株扩增到了NS1基因,对其进行了克隆、序列测定和分析,并在原核系统高效表达和纯化了NS1蛋白。进化分析表明,A/Anhui/01/2005毒株与近些年国内分离的水禽H5N1病毒进化关系更为接近。NS1与福建、湖南分离的禽流感病毒同源性最高,分别达到99.1%和98.2%。序列分析表明,与病毒的致病性相关的92位氨基酸为Asp,与病毒的细胞因子抗性相关的80~84位氨基酸发生缺失,与断裂/多聚腺苷酸化特异性因子结合的基序改变为GFEWN,和病毒致死性相关的PL基序为ESEV。随后在大肠杆菌高效表达并纯化了NS1蛋白。NS1基因及其编码产物的特性分析以及在原核系统的表达,为进一步研究NS1的致病机制和抗病毒药物研制奠定了基础。     

X-ray structure of influenza virus NS1 effector domain

The nonstructural protein NS1 of influenza virus is an antagonist of host immune responses and is implicated in virulence. It has two domains, an N-terminal double-stranded RNA-binding domain (RBD) and an effector domain crucial for RBD function, for nuclear export and for sequestering messenger RNA-processing proteins. Here we present the crystallographic structure of the effector domain, which has a novel fold and suggests mechanisms for increased virulence in H5N1 strains.     

Critical role of Dengue Virus NS1 protein in viral replication

Dengue virus (DENV) nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) is a highly conserved 46-kDa protein that contains 2 glycosylation sites (Asn-130 and Asn-207) and 12 conserved cysteine (Cys) residues. Here, we performed site-directed mutagenesis to generate systematic mutants of viral strain TSV01. The results of the subsequent analysis showed that an alanine substitution at the second N-linked glycan Asn-207 in NS1 delayed viral RNA synthesis, reduced virus plaque size, and weakened the cytopathic effect. Three mutants at Cys sites (Cys-4, Cys-55, Cys-291) and a C-terminal deletion (ΔC) mutant significantly impaired RNA synthesis, and consequently abolished viral growth, whereas alanine mutations at Asn-130 and Glu-173 resulted in phenotypes that were similar to the wild-type (WT) virus. Further analysis showed that the Asn-207 mutation slightly delayed viral replication. These results suggest that the three conserved disulfide bonds and the second N-linked glycan in NS1 are required for DENV-2 replication.     

H5N1亚型禽流感病毒NS1基因在昆虫细胞中的表达

将H5N1亚型禽流感病毒（AIV）NS1基因插入到杆状病毒转移载体pFastBac1中,获得重组转移载体pFastBac1- NS1。将pFastBac1- NS1转化到DH10Bac感受态细胞中,筛选到重组转座子rBacmid-NS1。在脂质体转染试剂介导下将rBacmid-NS1转染对数生长期的Sf9昆虫细胞获得重组杆状病毒rBV-NS1。rBV-NS1感染Sf9细胞后,通过SDS-PAGE、Western blot和ELISA分析表明：获得了分子量为26ku的特异性NS1蛋白;并且该蛋白可与H5N1 AIV攻毒鸭的血清发生特异性免疫反应,而不能与H5N1AIV灭活疫苗免疫鸭的血清发生反应。试验结果表明：NS1在Sf9昆虫细胞中获得了高效表达,具有与天然蛋白相似的免疫活性,并可以作为区分免疫及自然感染个体的鉴别诊断抗原。本实验为建立禽流感病毒自然感染家禽与禽流感灭活苗免疫家禽的鉴别诊断方法奠定基础。     

Analysis of PB2 protein from H9N2 and H5N1 avian flu virus

Influenza A viruses of subtype H9N2 are wide spread among poultry and other mammalian species. Crossing the species barrier from poultry to human occurred in recent years creating a pandemic of H9N2 virus. It is known that the pathogenicity of H9N2 is lower than H5N1. Nonetheless, it is important to establish the molecular functions of H9N2 viral proteins. We studied mutations in the polymerase protein PB2 of H9N2 from different strains and compared it with the highly pathogenic H5N1. The mutation M294T was found to be important in the N-myristoylation domain of Ck/UP/2573/India/04(H9N2) isolate. Prediction of secondary structures and PROSITE motif assignments were performed for PB2 to gain functional insight. Subsequently, the effect of mutations in secondary structures among strains is discussed.     

H5N1亚型禽流感病毒NS1基因的克隆及其诱导肺腺癌细胞A549凋亡的研究

通过RT-PCR的方法克隆H5N1亚型禽流感病毒NS1基因,并构建了真核表达载体pCMV-Myc/NS1。将此真核表达质粒转染肺腺癌细胞A549,48 h后,经Western印迹检测,NS1基因能在细胞中正确表达。经荧光显微镜、透射电镜观察和流式细胞仪检测,发现该株流感病毒的NS1蛋白可诱导肺腺癌细胞A549凋亡。     

禽流感病毒H5N1亚型NS1蛋白的研究进展

NS1蛋白（non—structural protein1）是A型流感病毒重要的非结构蛋白,作为流感病毒的致病因子,NS1通过多种方式增强病毒的致病性和毒力。就H5N1禽流感病毒NS1蛋白的结构与功能进行了综述。     

H5N1亚型禽流感病毒NS1基因截短体的克隆与原核表达

禽流感病毒H5N1 NS1蛋白是一种非结构蛋白,在病毒感染过程中发挥着重要的作用.构建基因截短的重组蛋白,可为进一步研究NS1不同结构域与宿主蛋白间的相互作用奠定基础.在成功克隆禽流感病毒H5N1全长NS1基因并测序的基础上,将部分截短基因序列克隆到表达栽体pET28a(+)上,构建基因截短的重组表达质粒pET28a-NS1-RBD和pET28a-NS1-ED,转化大肠埃希菌BL21(DE3),阳性重组质粒经IPTG诱导表达后进行SDS-PAGE检测,获得预期蛋白的表达,然后利用Ni-NTA树脂蛋白纯化系统对重组蛋白进行纯化,并通过Western Blotting进一步确认NS1及截短体蛋白的表达.结果表明,实验成功构建禽流感病毒H5N1亚型的NS1蛋白截短体,并在大肠埃希菌中高效表达,这为进一步研究NS1蛋白不同结构域与宿主蛋白的相互作用提供了实验材料,为深入研究NS1蛋白的生物学功能奠定了坚实基础.     

Impact of amino acid mutations in PB2, PB1-F2, and NS1 on the replication and pathogenicity of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza viruses

Here, we assessed the effects of PB1-F2 and NS1 mutations known to increase the pathogenicity of influenza viruses on the replication and pathogenicity in mice of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza viruses. We also characterized viruses possessing a PB1-F2 mutation that was recently identified in pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza virus isolates, with and without simultaneous mutations in PB2 and NS1. Our results suggest that some NS1 mutations and the newly identified PB1-F2 mutation have the potential to increase the replication and/or pathogenicity of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza viruses.     

禽流感病毒NS第263～277位核苷酸缺失降低其抗干扰素能力

2000年以来,多数H5N1亚型禽流感病毒在NS基因的263～277位发牛15个碱基的缺失。为了研究此缺失在流感病毒进化中的生物学意义,构建H5N1亚型流感病毒A／SD／04株的HA、NA、NS的全基因表达载体,以及NS基因263～277位删除的突变载体。通过反向遗传学技术,与编码WSN的其他内部基因（PB2,PB1,PA,NP和M）的表达载体进行组合转染,获得在NS基因的263～277位缺失和不缺失的2个重组H5N1亚型流感病毒（RWSN—m248和RWSN-248）。此两个重组病毒在无干扰素产生的Vero细胞上的繁殖滴度相似,在能产生干扰素的细胞MDCK和COS-1细胞上的繁殖滴度有明显差异。两个重组病毒在鸡胚中的繁殖滴,IVPI,MDT和EID50均无显著差异。说明NS基因的263～277位核苷酸的缺失不影响病毒的整体毒力,但降低了H5N1的抗干扰素能力。