Human herpesvirus 8-encoded thymidine kinase and phosphotransferase homologues confer sensitivity to ganciclovir

Human herpesvirus 8 (HHV-8) sensitivity to the nucleoside analog ganciclovir (GCV) suggests the presence of a virally encoded kinase that catalyzes the initial phosphorylation of GCV. Analysis of the HHV-8 genome identified two candidate kinases: proteins encoded by open reading frame (ORF) 21, with homology to the herpesvirus thymidine kinases (TK), and ORF 36, with homology to the herpesvirus phosphotransferases (PT). Experiments presented here show that both ORF 21 and ORF 36 encode GCV kinase activities as demonstrated by GCV phosphorylation and GCV-mediated cell death. In both regards the PT homologue ORF 36 was more active than the TK homologue ORF 21. ORF 21, but not ORF 36, weakly sensitized cells to killing by penciclovir. Neither ORF sensitized cells to killing by (E)-5-(2-bromovinyl)-2'-deoxyuridine.     

The activated human met gene encodes a protein tyrosine kinase

We have raised antibodies against a synthetic dodecapeptide corresponding to the carboxyl terminus of the predicted met gene product. Phosphorylation of 60 kDa and 65 kDa proteins on tyrosine residues was observed when immunoprecipitates of cells containing the activated human met gene were incubated with [gamma-32P]ATP. Phosphoproteins with the same molecular masses could be immunoprecipitated from cells metabolically labelled with [32P]orthophosphate. When considered together, these observations indicate that the activated human met gene encodes 60 kDa and 65 kDa proteins that can catalyse autophosphorylation on tyrosine residues.     

A gene which encodes a predicted protein kinase can restore some functions of the ras gene in fission yeast.

The ras1- mutation of the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe interferes with sexual differentiation by preventing conjugation and causing inefficient sporulation. From a gene library, we have isolated a gene, byr1+, which when in high copy number restores efficient sporulation to ras1- strains. byr1+ encodes a putative 340-amino acid protein product, the sequence of which strongly suggests that it functions as a protein kinase. Gene disruption experiments show that loss of byr1+ function does not interfere with mitotic growth but it completely prevents both conjugation and sporulation. byr1 is thus another important gene in the sexual differentiation pathway and we believe that at least part of ras1 function is to act directly or indirectly through byr1 to modulate protein phosphorylation.     

Characterization of the human herpesvirus 6 U69 gene product and identification of its nuclear localization signal

To elucidate the function of the U69 protein kinase of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) in vivo, we first analyzed its subcellular localization in HHV-6-infected Molt 3 cells by using polyclonal antibodies against the U69 protein. Immunofluorescence studies showed that the U69 signal localized to the nucleus in a mesh-like pattern in both HHV-6-infected and HHV6-transfected cells. A computer program predicted two overlapping classic nuclear localization signals (NLSs) in the N-terminal region of the protein; this NLS motif is highly conserved in the N-terminal region of most of the herpesvirus protein kinases examined to date. An N-terminal deletion mutant form of the protein failed to enter the nucleus, whereas a fusion protein of green fluorescent protein (GFP) and/or glutathione S-transferase (GST) and the U69 N-terminal region was transported into the nucleus, demonstrating that the predicted N-terminal NLSs of the protein actually function as NLSs. The nuclear transport of the GST-GFP fusion protein containing the N-terminal NLS of U69 was inhibited by wheat germ agglutinin and by the Q69L Ran-GTP mutant, indicating that the U69 protein is transported into the nucleus from the cytoplasm via classic nuclear transport machinery. A cell-free import assay showed that the nuclear transport of the U69 protein was mediated by importin alpha/beta in conjunction with the small GTPase Ran. When the import assay was performed with a low concentration of each importin-alpha subtype, NPI2/importin-alpha7 elicited more efficient transport activity than did Rch1/importin-alpha1 or Qip1/importin-alpha3. These results suggest a relationship between the localization of NPI2/importin-alpha7 and the cell tropism of HHV-6.     

The yeast PRP6 gene encodes a U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle (snRNP) protein, and the PRP9 gene encodes a protein required for U2 snRNP binding.

PRP6 and PRP9 are two yeast genes involved in pre-mRNA splicing. Incubation at 37 degrees C of strains that carry temperature-sensitive mutations at these loci inhibits splicing, and in vivo experiments suggested that they might be involved in commitment complex formation (P. Legrain and M. Rosbash, Cell 57:573-583, 1989). To examine the specific role that the PRP6 and PRP9 products may play in splicing or pre-mRNA transport to the cytoplasm, we have characterized in vitro splicing and spliceosome assembly in extracts derived from prp6 and prp9 mutant strains. We have also characterized RNAs that are specifically immunoprecipitated with the PRP6 and PRP9 proteins. Both approaches indicate that PRP6 encodes a U4/U6 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle (snRNP) protein and that the PRP9 protein is required for a stable U2 snRNP-substrate interaction. The results are discussed with reference to the previously observed in vivo phenotypes of these mutants.     

The latency-related gene of bovine herpesvirus 1 encodes a product which inhibits cell cycle progression.

Bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) establishes a latent infection in the sensory ganglionic neurons of cattle. The exclusive viral RNA expressed in a latent infection is the latency-related (LR) RNA, suggesting that it regulates some aspect of a latent infection. During the course of a productive infection, alphaherpesviruses induce certain events which occur during cell cycle progression. Consequently, we hypothesized that a BHV-1 infection might induce events in neurons which occur during cell cycle progression. In agreement with this hypothesis, cyclin A was detected in neurons of trigeminal ganglia when rabbits were infected. Neuronal cell cycle progression or inappropriate expression of cyclin A leads to apoptosis, suggesting that a viral factor inhibits the deleterious effects of cyclin A expression. The BHV-1 LR gene inhibited cell cycle progression and proliferation of human osteosarcoma cells. Antibodies directed against cyclin A or the LR protein coprecipitated the LR protein or cyclin A, respectively, suggesting that the two proteins interact with each other. We conclude that LR gene products inhibit cell cycle progression and hypothesize that this activity enhances the survival of infected neurons.     

The GLI gene encodes a nuclear protein which binds specific sequences in the human genome.

The GLI gene is amplified in a subset of human tumors and encodes a protein product with five zinc finger DNA-binding motifs. In this study, we show that the GLI gene product has a predominantly nuclear localization and binds DNA in a sequence-specific fashion. Three GLI binding sites were identified by using a novel procedure in which total human DNA was bound to a GLI recombinant fusion protein, and the polymerase chain reaction was used to amplify and recover the bound sequences. The GLI protein protected a 23- to 24-base region within all three binding sites, and the protected region in each case included the 9-base-pair sequence 5'-GACCACCCA-3'. One of the binding sites was contained within a 63-base-pair repeat of the variable number of tandem repeat type, whereas the other two sites were represented once in the genome. The approach used here to identify GLI binding sites should be applicable to the characterization of other zinc finger proteins.     

Molecular cloning of a novel phytochrome gene of the moss Ceratodon purpureus which encodes a putative light-regulated protein kinase

The phytochrome gene (phyCer) of the moss Ceratodon purpureus was isolated and characterized. phyCer is composed of three coding exons: exon I of 2035 bp, exon II of 300 bp and exon III of 1574 bp. The deduced polypeptide encoded by exon I and II exhibits substantial sequence homology to the conserved NH₂-terminal chromophore domain of known phytochromes. In contrast, the COOH-terminal polypeptide encoded by exon III shows no sequence homology to any phytochrome molecule. phyCer most likely represents a single-copy gene and is expressed in a light-independent manner. From the DNA sequence analysis it can be deduced that the PhyCer polypeptide is composed of 1303 amino acids (including the starting Met) which predicts a molecular mass for PhyCer of 145 kDa. The polypeptide encoded in exon III exhibits striking homology within the 300 carboxy-terminal amino acids to the catalytic domain of protein kinases. The carboxy terminus of PhyCer was found to be most homologous to protein-tyrosine kinases of Dictyostelium discoideum and to the products of retroviral oncogenes which belong to the Raf-Mos serine/threonine kinase family. From the hydropathy profile PhyCer appears to be a soluble protein. The predicted structure suggests that PhyCer represents a soluble light-sensor protein kinase which is linked with a cellular phosphorylating cascade.     

Genetic analysis of rolled, which encodes a Drosophila mitogen-activated protein kinase.

Genetic and molecular characterization of the dominant suppressors of D-raf(C110) on the second chromosome identified two gain-of-function alleles of rolled (rl), which encodes a mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase in Drosophila. One of the alleles, rl(Su23), was found to bear the same molecular lesion as rl(Sem), which has been reported to be dominant female sterile. However, rl(Su23) and the current stock of rl(Sem) showed only a weak dominant female sterility. Detailed analyses of the rl mutations demonstrated moderate dominant activities of these alleles in the Torso (Tor) signaling pathway, which explains the weak dominant female sterility observed in this study. The dominant rl mutations failed to suppress the terminal class maternal-effect mutations, suggesting that activation of Rl is essential, but not sufficient, for Tor signaling. Involvement of rl in cell proliferation was also demonstrated by clonal analysis. Branching and integration of signals in the MAP kinase cascade is discussed.     

The Saccharomyces cerevisiae checkpoint gene BUB1 encodes a novel protein kinase.

Normal cell multiplication requires that the events of mitosis occur in a carefully ordered fashion. Cells employ checkpoints to prevent cycle progression until some prerequisite step has been completed. To explore the mechanisms of checkpoint enforcement, we previously screened for mutants of Saccharomyces cerevisiae which are unable to recover from a transient treatment with a benzimidazole-related microtubule inhibitor because they fail to inhibit subsequent cell cycle steps. Two of the identified genes, BUB2 and BUB3, have been cloned and described (M. A. Hoyt, L. Totis, and B. T. Roberts, Cell 66:507-517, 1991). Here we present the characterization of the BUB1 gene and its product. Genetic evidence was obtained suggesting that Bub1 and Bub3 are mutually dependent for function, and immunoprecipitation experiments demonstrated a physical association between the two. Sequence analysis of BUB1 revealed a domain with similarity to protein kinases. In vitro experiments confirmed that Bub1 possesses kinase activity; Bub1 was able to autophosphorylate and to catalyze phosphorylation of Bub3. In addition, overproduced Bub1 was found to localize to the cell nucleus.     

The human herpesvirus 6 U21–U24 gene cluster is dispensable for virus growth

Human herpesvirus 6 (HHV‐6) is a T‐lymphotrophic virus belongs to the genus Roseolovirus within the beta herpesvirus subfamily. The U20–U24 gene cluster is unique to Roseoloviruses; however, both their function and whether they are essential for virus growth is unknown. Recently, bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) techniques have been used to investigate HHV‐6A. This study describes generation of a virus genome lacking U21–U24 (HHV‐6ABACΔU21–24) and shows that infectious virus particles can be reconstituted from this BAC DNA. Our data indicate that the HHV‐6 U21–U24 gene cluster is dispensable for virus propagation.     

A pathogen-induced gene of barley encodes a protein showing high similarity to a protein kinase regulator.

A full length cDNA of a barley leaf messenger, found to increase in amount during infection attempts by the powdery mildew fungus (Erysiphe graminis), is characterized. The messenger encodes a polypeptide of 261 amino acid residues with a calculated mass of 29.2 kDa and a pI of 4.6. Sequence comparisons as well as serological studies demonstrate that the encoded protein is closely related to a family of mammalian proteins believed to have functions associated with the multifunctional Ca(2+)-dependent protein kinases.     

Identification and characterization of a novel testis-specific gene CKT2, which encodes a substrate for protein kinase CK2

Protein kinase CK2 is a serine/threonine kinase known to phosphorylate numerous substrates. CK2 is implicated in several physiologic and pathologic processes, particularly in cancer biology. CK2 is comprised of several subunits, including CK2α, CK2α′ and CK2β. Inactivation of CK2α′ leads to chromatin degeneration of germ cells, resulting in male sterility. To identify additional targets of CK2α′ in testes and to determine the role of CK2α′ in germ cell nuclear integrity, GST pull-down and protein–protein interaction assays were conducted. A novel testis-specific gene, CKT2 (CK2 Target protein 2), was found whose product interacts with and is phosphorylated by CK2 in vitro and in vivo. CKT2 is a 30.2 kDa protein with one coiled-coil domain and six putative phosphorylation sites. High expression of CKT2 correlated with chromatin condensation of spermatids in murine testes. Findings reported herein demonstrate that CKT2 is a target protein of native CK2α′ in testes and suggest that CKT2 plays a role in chromatin regulation of male germ cells.     

The Arabidopsis PBS1 resistance gene encodes a member of a novel protein kinase subfamily

Specific recognition of Pseudomonas syringae strains that express the avirulence gene avrPphB requires two genes in Arabidopsis, RPS5 and PBS1. Previous work has shown that RPS5 encodes a member of the nucleotide binding site-leucine rich repeat class of plant disease resistance genes. Here we report that PBS1 encodes a putative serine-threonine kinase. Southern blot analysis revealed that the pbs1-1 allele contained a deletion of the 3' end of the PBS1 open reading frame. DNA sequence analysis of the pbs1-2 allele showed it to be a missense mutation that caused a glycine to arginine substitution in the activation segment of PBS1, a region known to regulate substrate binding and catalytic activity in many protein kinases. The identity of PBS1 was confirmed using both transient transformation and stable transformation of mutant pbs1 plants. Comparison of the predicted PBS1 amino acid sequence with other plant protein kinases revealed that PBS1 belongs to a distinct subfamily of protein kinases that contains no other members of known function. The Pto kinase of tomato, which is required for specific resistance to P. syringae strains expressing avrPto, did not fall in the same subfamily as PBS1 and is only 42% identical in the kinase domain. These data suggest that PBS1 and Pto may fulfil different functions in the recognition of pathogen avirulence proteins. We discuss several possible models for the roles of PBS1 and RPS5 in AvrPphB recognition.     

The fission yeast pmk1+ gene encodes a novel mitogen-activated protein kinase homolog which regulates cell integrity and functions coordinately with the protein kinase C pathway.

We have isolated a gene, pmk1+, a third mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) gene homolog from the fission yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. The predicted amino acid sequence shows the most homology (63 to 65% identity) to those of budding yeast Saccharomyces Mpk1 and Candida Mkc1. The Pmk1 protein contains phosphorylated tyrosines, and the level of tyrosine phosphorylation was increased in the dsp1 mutant which lacks an attenuating phosphatase for Pmk1. The level of tyrosine phosphorylation appears constant during hypotonic or heat shock treatment. The cells with pmk1 deleted (delta pmk1) are viable but show various defective phenotypes, including cell wall weakness, abnormal cell shape, a cytokinesis defect, and altered sensitivities to cations, such as hypersensitivity to potassium and resistance to sodium. Consistent with a high degree of conservation of amino acid sequence, multicopy plasmids containing the MPK1 gene rescued the defective phenotypes of the delta pmk1 mutant. The frog MAPK gene also suppressed the pmk1 disruptant. The results of genetic analysis indicated that Pmk1 lies on a novel MAPK pathway which does not overlap functionally with the other two MAPK pathways, the Spk1-dependent mating signal pathway and Sty1/Spc1/Phh1-dependent stress-sensing pathway. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Mpk1 is involved in cell wall integrity and functions downstream of the protein kinase C homolog. In contrast, in S. pombe, Pmk1 may not act in a linear manner with respect to fission yeast protein kinase C homologs. Interestingly, however, these two pathways are not independent; instead, they regulate cell integrity in a coordinate manner.     

The [U4/U6.U5] tri-snRNP-specific 27K protein is a novel SR protein that can be phosphorylated by the snRNP-associated protein kinase.

SR proteins play important roles in the recognition and selection of the 3' and 5' splice site of a given intron and contribute to the phosphorylation/dephosphorylation-mediated regulation of pre-mRNA splicing. Recent studies have demonstrated that the U1 snRNP is recruited to the 5' splice site by protein/protein interactions involving the SR domains of the U1-70K protein and SF2/ASF. Recently, it was suggested that SR proteins might also contribute to the binding of the [U4/U6.U5] tri-snRNP to the pre-spliceosome (Roscigno RF, Garcia-Blanco MA, 1995, RNA 1:692-706), although it remains unclear whether these SR proteins interact with proteins of the tri-snRNP complex. As a first step toward the identification of proteins that could potentially mediate the integration of the [U4/U6.U5] tri-snRNP complex into the spliceosome, we investigated whether purified [U4/U6.U5] tri-snRNP complexes contain SR proteins. Three proteins in the tri-snRNP complex with approximate molecular weights of 27, 60, and 100 kDa were phosphorylated by purified snRNP-associated protein kinase, which has been shown previously to phosphorylate the serine/ arginine-rich domains of U1-70K and SF2/ASF (Woppmann A et al., 1993, Nucleic Acids Res 21:2815-2822). These proteins are thus prime candidates for novel tri-snRNP SR proteins. Here, we describe the biochemical and molecular characterization of the 27K protein. Analysis of a cDNA encoding the 27K protein revealed an N-terminal SR domain strongly homologous (54% identity) to the SR domain of the U1 snRNP-specific 70K protein. In contrast to many other SR proteins, the 27K protein does not contain an RNA-binding domain. The 27K protein can be phosphorylated in vitro by the snRNP-associated protein kinase and exhibits several isoelectric variants upon 2D gel electrophoresis. Thus, the tri-snRNP-specific 27K protein could potentially be involved in SR protein-mediated protein/protein interactions and, additionally, its phosphorylation state could modulate pre-mRNA splicing.     

Functional characterization of the MKC1 gene of Candida albicans, which encodes a mitogen-activated protein kinase homolog related to cell integrity.

Mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinases represent a group of serine/threonine protein kinases playing a central role in signal transduction processes in eukaryotic cells. Using a strategy based on the complementation of the thermosensitive autolytic phenotype of slt2 null mutants, we have isolated a Candida albicans homolog of Saccharomyces cerevisiae MAP kinase gene SLT2 (MPK1), which is involved in the recently outlined PKC1-controlled signalling pathway. The isolated gene, named MKC1 (MAP kinase from C. albicans), coded for a putative protein, Mkc1p, of 58,320 Da that displayed all the characteristic domains of MAP kinases and was 55% identical to S. cerevisiae Slt2p (Mpk1p). The MKC1 gene was deleted in a diploid Candida strain, and heterozygous and homozygous strains, in both Ura+ and Ura- backgrounds, were obtained to facilitate the analysis of the function of the gene. Deletion of the two alleles of the MKC1 gene gave rise to viable cells that grew at 28 and 37 degrees C but, nevertheless, displayed a variety of phenotypic traits under more stringent conditions. These included a low growth yield and a loss of viability in cultures grown at 42 degrees C, a high sensitivity to thermal shocks at 55 degrees C, an enhanced susceptibility to caffeine that was osmotically remediable, and the formation of a weak cell wall with a very low resistance to complex lytic enzyme preparations. The analysis of the functions downstream of the MKC1 gene should contribute to understanding of the connection of growth and morphogenesis in pathogenic fungi.     

Bovine herpesvirus tegument protein VP22 enhances thymidine kinase/ganciclovir suicide gene therapy for neuroblastomas compared to herpes simplex virus VP22

Herpesvirus tegument protein VP22 can enhance the effect of therapeutic proteins in gene therapy, such as thymidine kinase (tk) and p53; however, the mechanism is unclear or controversial. In this study, mammalian expression vectors carrying bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) VP22 (BVP22) or herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) VP22 (HVP22) and equine herpesvirus type 4 (EHV-4) tk (Etk) were constructed in order to evaluate and compare the therapeutic potentials of BVP22 and HVP22 to enhance Etk/ganciclovir (Etk/GCV) suicide gene therapy for neuroblastomas by GCV cytotoxicity assays and noninvasive bioluminescent imaging in vitro and in vivo. BVP22 enhanced Etk/GCV cytotoxicity compared to that with HVP22 both in vitro and in vivo. However, assays utilizing a mixture of parental and stably transfected cells indicated that the enhancement was detected only in transfected cells. Thus, the therapeutic potential of BVP22 and HVP22 in Etk/GCV suicide gene therapy in this tumor system is not due to VP22 delivery of Etk into surrounding cells but rather is likely due to an enhanced intracellular effect.