The Human Cytomegalovirus UL76 Gene Regulates the Level of Expression of the UL77 Gene

Background

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) can be reactivated under immunosuppressive conditions causing several fatal pneumonitis, hepatitis, retinitis, and gastrointestinal diseases. HCMV also causes deafness and mental retardation in neonates when primary infection has occurred during pregnancy. In the genome of HCMV at least 194 known open reading frames (ORFs) have been predicted, and approximately one-quarter, or 41 ORFs, are required for viral replication in cell culture. In contrast, the majority of the predicted ORFs are nonessential for viral replication in cell culture. However, it is also possible that these ORFs are required for the efficient viral replication in the host. The UL77 gene of HCMV is essential for viral replication and has a role in viral DNA packaging. The function of the upstream UL76 gene in the HCMV-infected cells is not understood. UL76 and UL77 are cistons on the same viral mRNA and a conventional 5′ mRNA for UL77 has not been detected. The vast majority of eukaryotic mRNAs are monocistronic, i.e., they encode only a single protein.

Methodology/Principal Findings

To determine whether the UL76 ORF affects UL77 gene expression, we mutated UL76 by ORF frame-shifts, stop codons or deletion of the viral gene. The effect on UL77 protein expression was determined by either transfection of expression plasmids or infection with recombinant viruses. Mutation of UL76 ORF significantly increased the level of UL77 protein expression. However, deletion of UL76 upstream of the UL77 ORF had only marginal effects on viral growth.

Conclusions/Significance

While UL76 is not essential for viral replication, the UL76 ORF is involved in regulation of the level of UL77 protein expression in a manner dependent on the translation re-initiation. UL76 may fine-tune the UL77 expression for the efficient viral replication in the HCMV- infected cells.     

鸭肠炎病毒UL6基因的分子特征

为了研究鸭肠炎病毒(Duck enteritis virus,DEV)UL6的特征,以DEV Clone-03株基因组DNA为模板,用靶基因步移PCR方法扩增得到UL6基因区域2534 bp的DNA片段。结果发现,DEV Clone-03 UL6基因由2373个核苷酸组成,编码一条790个氨基酸残基组成的多肽。与14株已报道的具有全UL6同源基因序列的疱疹病毒参考株进行比较,DEV Clone-03株与α疱疹病毒的核苷酸和氨基酸同源性较之与β疱疹病毒和γ疱疹病毒要高。氨基酸序列比较显示,DEV Clone-03 UL6基因具有α疱疹病毒UL6同源基因5个保守区域。UL6基因推导的氨基酸系统发育进化树分析发现,DEV Clone-03与α疱疹病毒属一个群,在α疱疹病毒中与马立克氏病病毒(Marek′sdisease herpesvirus,MDV)更接近。同时,序列分析发现,在201~222和425~441等氨基酸位,α疱疹病毒参考毒株均有不同程度的缺失,而DEV Clone-03表现出独有的完整性。     

Molecular Characterization of the Duck Enteritis Virus UL4 Gene

Duck enteritis virus (DEV) is a herpesvirus that causes an acute, contagious and fatal disease. In the present article, the DEV UL4 gene was cloned and sequenced from a vaccine virus. A degenerate oligonucleotide primer for the consensus site of herpesvirus UL3 gene and a specific primer located in UL5 were used in the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to amplify a DNA product 2 086 bp in size. DNA sequence analysis revealed that a 714 bp open reading frame (ORF) of DEV encoding a 237 amino acid polypeptide is homologous to the family of herpesvirus UL4 proteins and therefore has been characterized as a DEV UL4 gene. Alignment of the DEV UL4 protein sequence with those of other alphaherpesviruses showed that 10 amino acid residues are completely conserved. Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that the seventeen alphaherpesviruses viruses analyzed were classified into four large groups, and the duck enteritis virus branched separately, closely related to the Mardiviruses group comprising Gallid herpesvirus 2 (GaHV-2), Gallid herpesvirus 3 (GaHV-3) and Meleagrid herpesvirus 1 (MeHV-1). The present study showed that the evolutionary relationship of the UL4 protein could be used for classification of alphaherpesviruses.     

Gene Arrangement within the Unique Long Genome Region of Infectious Laryngotracheitis Virus Is Distinct from That of Other Alphaherpesviruses

The genome of the avian alphaherpesvirus infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) comprises ca. 155 kbp of which ca. one-third have been sequenced so far. To gain additional sequence information we analyzed two stretches of 15.5 and 1.9 kbp of the ILTV unique long (U_L) genome region. The larger fragment contains homologs of the herpes simplex virus (HSV) UL23 (thymidine kinase) and UL22 (glycoprotein H) genes followed by five open reading frames (ORF) encoding putative proteins of 334 to 410 amino acids which exhibit no homology to any known herpesvirus protein. RNA analyses showed that these unique ILTV genes are indeed expressed. An origin of replication separates this cluster of unique genes from a conserved gene cluster consisting of the UL45, UL46, UL48, UL49, UL49.5, and UL50 homologs. The absence of UL47 from this position coincides with the localization of a UL47-homologous ORF within the unique short (U_S) region of the ILTV genome (M. Wild, S. Cook, and M. Cochran, Virus Genes 12:107–116, 1996). Within the second analyzed region the ILTV UL21 homolog was found adjacent to the UL44 gene. We thus identified five novel herpesvirus genes in ILTV and present evidence for a large internal inversion in the ILTV U_L region, in contrast to the collinear genomes of other alphaherpesviruses. Interestingly, a similar inversion is also present in the porcine alphaherpesvirus pseudorabies virus.     

Inheritance of Acquired Behaviour Adaptations and Brain Gene Expression in Chickens

Background

Environmental challenges may affect both the exposed individuals and their offspring. We investigated possible adaptive aspects of such cross-generation transmissions, and hypothesized that chronic unpredictable food access would cause chickens to show a more conservative feeding strategy and to be more dominant, and that these adaptations would be transmitted to the offspring.

Methodology/Principal Findings

Parents were raised in an unpredictable (UL) or in predictable diurnal light rhythm (PL, 12∶12 h light∶dark). In a foraging test, UL birds pecked more at freely available, rather than at hidden and more attractive food, compared to birds from the PL group. Female offspring of UL birds, raised in predictable light conditions without parental contact, showed a similar foraging behavior, differing from offspring of PL birds. Furthermore, adult offspring of UL birds performed more food pecks in a dominance test, showed a higher preference for high energy food, survived better, and were heavier than offspring of PL parents. Using cDNA microarrays, we found that the differential brain gene expression caused by the challenge was mirrored in the offspring. In particular, several immunoglobulin genes seemed to be affected similarly in both UL parents and their offspring. Estradiol levels were significantly higher in egg yolk from UL birds, suggesting one possible mechanism for these effects.

Conclusions/Significance

Our findings suggest that unpredictable food access caused seemingly adaptive responses in feeding behavior, which may have been transmitted to the offspring by means of epigenetic mechanisms, including regulation of immune genes. This may have prepared the offspring for coping with an unpredictable environment.     

The Interacting UL31 and UL34 Gene Products of Pseudorabies Virus Are Involved in Egress from the Host-Cell Nucleus and Represent Components of Primary Enveloped but Not Mature Virions

A 2.6-kbp fragment of the pseudorabies virus (PrV) genome was sequenced and shown to contain the homologues of the highly conserved herpesvirus genes UL31 and UL32. By use of a monospecific antiserum, the UL31 gene product was identified as a nuclear protein with an apparent molecular mass of 29 kDa. For functional analysis, UL31 was deleted by mutagenesis in Escherichia coli of an infectious full-length clone of the PrV genome. The resulting virus mutants were deficient in plaque formation, and titers were reduced more than 100-fold from those of wild-type PrV. Ultrastructural analyses demonstrated that capsid maturation and DNA packaging were not affected. However, neither budding at the inner nuclear membrane nor cytoplasmic or extracellular virus particles were observed. These replication defects were similar to those of a UL34 deletion mutant (B. G. Klupp, H. Granzow, and T. C. Mettenleiter, J. Virol. 74:10063-10073, 2000) and could be completely repaired in a cell line which constitutively expresses the UL31 protein. Yeast two-hybrid studies revealed that a UL31 fusion protein specifically interacts with plasmids of a PrV genome library expressing the N-terminal part of UL34. Vice versa, UL34 selected UL31-encoding plasmids from the library. Immunofluorescence studies and immune electron microscopy demonstrated that in cells infected with wild-type PrV, both proteins accumulate at the nuclear membrane, whereas in the absence of UL34 the UL31 protein is dispersed throughout the nucleus. Like the UL34 protein, the UL31 gene product is a component of enveloped virus particles within the perinuclear space and absent from mature virions. Our findings suggest that physical interaction between these two virus proteins might be a prerequisite for primary envelopment of PrV at the inner nuclear membrane and that this envelope is removed by fusion with the outer nuclear membrane.     

The Product of the Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 UL25 Gene Is Required for Encapsidation but Not for Cleavage of Replicated Viral DNA

The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) UL25 gene contains a 580-amino-acid open reading frame that codes for an essential protein. Previous studies have shown that the UL25 gene product is a virion component (M. A. Ali et al., Virology 216:278–283, 1996) involved in virus penetration and capsid assembly (C. Addison et al., Virology 138:246–259, 1984). In this study, we describe the isolation of a UL25 mutant (KUL25NS) that was constructed by insertion of an in-frame stop codon in the UL25 open reading frame and propagated on a complementing cell line. Although the mutant was capable of synthesis of viral DNA, it did not form plaques or produce infectious virus in noncomplementing cells. Antibodies specific for the UL25 protein were used to demonstrate that KUL25NS-infected Vero cells did not express the UL25 protein. Western immunoblotting showed that the UL25 protein was associated with purified, wild-type HSV A, B, and C capsids. Transmission electron microscopy indicated that the nucleus of Vero cells infected with KUL25NS contained large numbers of both A and B capsids but no C capsids. Analysis of infected cells by sucrose gradient sedimentation analysis confirmed that the ratio of A to B capsids was elevated in KUL25NS-infected Vero cells. Following restriction enzyme digestion, specific terminal fragments were observed in DNA isolated from KUL25NS-infected Vero cells, indicating that the UL25 gene was not required for cleavage of replicated viral DNA. The latter result was confirmed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE), which showed the presence of genome-size viral DNA in KUL25NS-infected Vero cells. DNase I treatment prior to PFGE demonstrated that monomeric HSV DNA was not packaged in the absence of the UL25 protein. Our results indicate that the product of the UL25 gene is required for packaging but not cleavage of replicated viral DNA.     

Characterization of Drug Resistance-Associated Mutations in the Human Cytomegalovirus DNA Polymerase Gene by Using Recombinant Mutant Viruses Generated from Overlapping DNA Fragments

A number of specific point mutations in the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) DNA polymerase (UL54) gene have been tentatively associated with decreased susceptibility to antiviral agents and consequently with clinical failure. To precisely determine the roles of UL54 mutations in HCMV drug resistance, recombinant UL54 mutant viruses were generated by using cotransfection of nine overlapping HCMV DNA fragments into permissive fibroblasts, and their drug susceptibility profiles were determined. Amino acid substitutions located in UL54 conserved region IV (N408D, F412C, and F412V), region V (A987G), and δ-region C (L501I, K513E, P522S, and L545S) conferred various levels of resistance to cidofovir and ganciclovir. Mutations in region II (T700A and V715M) and region VI (V781I) were associated with resistance to foscarnet and adefovir. The region II mutations also conferred moderate resistance to lobucavir. In contrast to mutations in other UL54 conserved regions, those residing specifically in region III (L802M, K805Q, and T821I) were associated with various drug susceptibility profiles. Mutations located outside the known UL54 conserved regions (S676G and V759M) did not confer any significant changes in HCMV drug susceptibility. Predominantly an additive effect of multiple UL54 mutations with respect to the final drug resistance phenotype was demonstrated. Finally, the influence of selected UL54 mutations on the susceptibility of viral DNA replication to antiviral drugs was characterized by using a transient-transfection-plus-infection assay. Results of this work exemplify specific roles of the UL54 conserved regions in the development of HCMV drug resistance and may help guide optimization of HCMV therapy.     

人类巨细胞病毒UL133基因在临床低传代株中的多态性研究

人类巨细胞病毒在多次传代后,会表现出不同的毒力水平.与临床低传代株Toledo相比,实验室高传代株AD169缺失了19个开放阅读框(ORF).这19个基因被认为是与HCMV致病性最可能相关的一组基因,研究这些基因的多态性对揭示HCMV致病性的遗传基础具有指导意义.UL133基因是这19个ORF中的一个.以临床低传代株Toledo和Merlin为对照,分析了23个临床病毒株UL133基因的遗传多态性.序列分析表明,UL133基因具有一定的多态性,Toledo株、Merlin株与我们分离到的临床株一起可分为3个基因型:G1、G2和G3.G2、G3型毒株均能导致先天性感染.没有发现UL133基因型与患儿临床疾病的必然关联.     

腺病毒介导的人巨细胞病毒UL49基因小鼠模型的建立

建立表达HCMV UL49 基因的转基因小鼠,为抗病毒药物研究提供有效的实验动物模型。本实验将UL49-GFP基因插入腺病毒穿梭质粒pDC316中,构建重组质粒pDC316-UL49-GFP,与腺病毒骨架质粒pBHGloxΔE1,3Cre 通过脂质体介导共转染293 细胞,重组产生腺病毒Ad-UL49-GFP, 经PCR和Western Blot鉴定正确后,大量扩增、纯化,制备高滴度重组腺病毒。纯化腺病毒经尾静脉注射感染小鼠,通过荧光定量PCR 和Western blot 方法,检测UL49 基因在小鼠体内组织分布和表达时相。结果显示UL49基因在小鼠的心、肝、脾、肺、肾组织均有表达,并且表达量由高到低顺序依次是：肝、脾、肾、心、肺,在腺病毒感染第3天在各靶器官表达水平较高,此后逐渐下降,第14天时仅存在肝和脾中。表明表达UL49基因的小鼠模型构建成功。小鼠模型的成功建立为下一步筛选以UL49基因为靶的抗病毒药物奠定了基础。     

The Human Cytomegalovirus UL133-138 Gene Locus Attenuates the Lytic Viral Cycle in Fibroblasts

The genomes of HCMV clinical strains (e.g. FIX, TR, PH, etc) contain a 15 kb region that encodes 20 putative ORFs. The region, termed ULb’, is lost after serial passage of virus in human foreskin fibroblast (HFF) cell culture. Compared to clinical strains, laboratory strains replicate faster and to higher titers of infectious virus. We made recombinant viruses with 22, 14, or 7 ORFs deleted from the ULb’ region using FIX and TR as model clinical strains. We also introduced a stop codon into single ORFs between UL133 and UL138 to prevent protein expression. All deletions within ULb’ and all stop codon mutants within the UL133 to UL138 region increased to varying degrees, viral major immediate early RNA and protein, DNA, and cell-free infectious virus compared to the wild type viruses. The wild type viral proteins slowed down the viral replication process along with cell-free infectious virus release from human fibroblast cells.     

基于Red重组系统构建含Flag标签标记UL23基因的重组人巨细胞病毒

利用来源于λ噬菌体的Red系统,将Flag标签及两侧带有FRT位点的卡那霉素抗性基因片段插入原HCMV TowneBAC中UL23基因3 '末端区域,通过卡那抗性筛选带有抗性标记的重组菌株,并通过表达重组酶FLP的质粒pCP20去除卡那霉素抗性基因,得到带有Flag标签标记UL23基因和单一FRT位点的突变BAC.重组后的BAC分子同质粒pcDNA3.1(+)-pUL82共转染HFF细胞后重建重组HCMV.Western blotting检测证实所构建重组病毒能够表达含Flag标签标记的pUL23蛋白.此含有Flag标签标记UL23基因的重组HCMV的成功构建为了进一步研究人巨细胞病毒UL23基因及其产物的功能提供依据.     

伪狂犬病病毒宿主关闭蛋白的基因克隆及结构分析

为研究伪狂犬病病毒 (pseudorabiesvires ,PRV)UL4 1基因编码的病毒宿主关闭蛋白 (VHS)的结构与功能 ,通过PCR扩增得到含UL4 1基因完整编码区的 1174bp片段 ,将该片段克隆到表达载体pGEX KG中GST下游 ,在大肠杆菌BL2 1(DE3)中实现了GST VHS融合蛋白的高效表达 .序列分析发现VHS蛋白具有 4个保守区 ,并且第 3个保守区与核酸内切酶结构域FEN 1(1A76 )高度同源 .PROSPECT软件预测的伪狂犬病病毒VHS蛋白三维结构中含有 10个α螺旋和 2 2个β折叠 ,与单纯疱疹病毒Ⅰ型的VHS蛋白三维结构十分相似 .     

Site-Directed Mutagenesis of the Virion Host Shutoff Gene (UL41) of Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV): Analysis of Functional Differences between HSV Type 1 (HSV-1) and HSV-2 Alleles

During lytic herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections, the HSV virion host shutoff protein (UL41) accelerates the turnover of host and viral mRNAs. Although the UL41 polypeptides from HSV type 1 (HSV-1) strain KOS and HSV-2 strain 333 are 87% identical, HSV-2 strains generally shut off the host more rapidly and completely than HSV-1 strains. In a previous study, we identified three regions of the HSV-2 UL41 polypeptide (amino acids 1 to 135, 208 to 243, and 365 to 492) that enhance the activity of KOS when substituted for the corresponding portions of the KOS protein (D. N. Everly, Jr., and G. S. Read, J. Virol. 71:7157-7166, 1997). These results have been extended through the analysis of more than 50 site-directed mutants of UL41 in which selected HSV-2 amino acids were introduced into an HSV-1 background and HSV-1 amino acids were introduced into the HSV-2 allele. The HSV-2 amino acids R22 and E25 were found to contribute dramatically to the greater activity of the HSV-2 allele, as did the HSV-2 amino acids A396 and S423. The substitution of six HSV-2 amino acids between residues 210 and 242 enhanced the HSV-1 activity to a lesser extent. In most cases, individual substitutions or the substitution of combinations of fewer than all six amino acids reduced the UL41 activity to less than that of KOS. The results pinpoint several type-specific amino acids that are largely responsible for the greater activity of the UL41 polypeptide of HSV-2. In addition, several spontaneous mutations that abolish detectable UL41 activity were identified.     

The Gene Product of Human Cytomegalovirus Open Reading Frame UL56 Binds the pac Motif and Has Specific Nuclease Activity

Using the cis-acting human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) packaging elements (pac 1 and pac 2) as DNA probes, specific DNA-protein complexes were detected by electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) in both HCMV-infected cell nuclear extracts and recombinant baculovirus-infected cell extracts containing the HCMV p130 (pUL56) protein. DNA-binding proteins, which were common in uninfected and infected cell extracts, were also detected. Mutational analysis showed that only the AT-rich core sequences in these cis-acting motifs, 5′-TAAAAA-3′ (pac 1) and 5′-TTTTAT-3′ (pac 2), were required for specific DNA-protein complex formation. The specificity of the DNA-protein complexes was confirmed by EMSA competition. Furthermore, a specific endonuclease activity was found to be associated with lysates of baculovirus-infected cells expressing recombinant p130 (rp130). This nuclease activity was time dependent, related to the amount of rp130 in the assay, and ATP independent. Nuclease activity remained associated with rp130 after partial purification by sucrose gradient centrifugation, suggesting that this activity is a property of HCMV p130. We propose a possible involvement of p130 in HCMV DNA packaging.Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), one of eight human herpesviruses, can cause serious illness in neonates as well as in immunocompromised adults (2). For example, transplant and AIDS patients may develop life-threatening diseases as a consequence of primary infection or reactivation of latent infection. Present therapeutic approaches are limited, and new strategies that may result from a better understanding of the molecular events involved in viral maturation are needed.The HCMV virion consists of an envelope, an amorphous tegument, and an icosahedral nucleocapsid, which is assembled in the nuclei of infected cells. The precise molecular events of HCMV capsid assembly and subsequent DNA packaging are not well understood. It is generally accepted that viral DNA is packaged into a procapsid consisting of major capsid protein (UL86), minor capsid protein (UL85), minor capsid protein-binding protein (UL46), smallest capsid protein (UL47/48), assembly protein (UL80.5), and proteinase precursor protein (UL80a) (8). The assembly protein is removed during DNA insertion. It is unclear how the concatenated viral DNA contacts empty capsids and is cleaved and packaged into the capsid.Recent studies with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) mutants that were temperature sensitive suggest that cleavage of the concatenated DNA does not occur in the absence of packaging (1). One possible model would be the involvement of cleavage packaging protein(s) which could facilitate incorporation of DNA into the procapsid by attaching to a specific motif within the viral genome. With HSV-1, the UL36 gene product (ICP1) and a smaller protein (possibly encoded by UL37) are part of a complex that recognizes the HSV-specific a sequence and are required for cleavage and packaging of viral DNA from concatemers (6, 7). In addition, the HSV-1 ICP 18.5 (UL28) gene product and the pseudorabies virus (PrV) homolog (16) were also reported to play an important role in DNA packaging (1, 14). Addison et al. (1) demonstrated that empty capsids were observed under conditions nonpermissive for the expression of the HSV-1 ICP 18.5 gene product. The HSV-1 ICP 18.5 mutants failed to cleave concatenated viral DNA in noncomplementing cells, suggesting that cleavage and packaging require ICP 18.5. Similar results were reported by Mettenleiter et al. (14) for PrV mutant protein. These observations suggest that the HSV-1 UL36, UL37, and UL28 gene products are involved in cleavage and packaging of concatenated viral DNA.In a recent study, we identified and partially characterized the gene product of HCMV UL56 (4). The HCMV UL56 gene product of 130 kDa is the homolog of the HSV-1 UL28 gene product. It is therefore postulated that UL56 possesses properties comparable to those of HSV-1 UL28, implying an involvement in cleavage and packaging of DNA. The HCMV genomic a sequence is a short sequence located at both termini of the genome and repeated in an inverted orientation at the L-S junction. The a sequence plays a key role in replication as a cis-acting signal for cleavage and packaging of progeny viral DNA and circularization of the viral genome. The HCMV a sequence contains two conserved motifs, pac 1 and pac 2, which are required for cleavage and packaging of the viral DNA (18). Both sequence motifs are located on one side of the cleavage site. The pac 1 and pac 2 motifs have an AT-rich core flanked by a GC-rich sequence. During the initial step of viral DNA packaging, a capsid-associated protein may bind to the pac sequences and may be involved in cleavage of the viral DNA concatemer.In this study, electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSAs) were performed with DNA probes spanning the region of these cis-acting elements. These studies demonstrate that specific proteins from HCMV-infected nuclear extracts or baculovirus-UL56-infected cell extracts bind to the pac motifs. Using affinity-purified monospecific antibodies, we show that p130 is present in specific DNA-protein complexes containing the pac motifs of the viral genome. Furthermore, evidence is presented for a sequence-specific endonuclease activity of recombinant HCMV p130, using circular plasmid DNA bearing the a sequence as a substrate.