草鱼出血病病毒873株基因组外发现缺损性干扰颗粒的亚基因组分

草鱼出血病病毒基因组由11条dsRNA片段组成。最近在研究基因组时发现,在病毒基因组外存在的许多核酸成份,但在核苷酸数量上少于基因组成份,表现为较小分子量的RNA片段。在完整地克隆了这些片段的全长cDNA后,测定了其中两个克隆的序列组成,发现它们为病毒基因组经剪切后的部分片段,已经重新装配,而且都含有原基因组某一片段3′端和5′的保守区和倒转重复区,缺失中间部分。根据其特点来看,它们应为目前病毒学研究的重要材料－缺损性干扰颗粒的亚基因组成份。     

鹅源新城疫病毒ZJI株基因组cDNA克隆的序列修饰

将鹅源新城疫病毒ZJI株全基因组cDNA克隆通过酶切切下包含T7启动子区域和转录载体的片段,将其自身环化后获得约6．5kb的质粒。设计引物,利用基因定点突变技术,在此质粒上T7启动子与NDV Leader序列之间突变插入额外的3个G碱基,将此突变最终引入到原基因组cDNA克隆中。应用RT—PCR技术从尿囊液中扩增NDV基因组F／HN基因区域部分片段,利用限制性内切酶BsmBI将扩增片段连接,最终将原cDNA克隆中相应片段替换下。测序结果表明,原基因组cDNA克隆中特定位置碱基插入突变成功,F／HN基因区域碱基突变均得以纠正。以上cDNA克隆的修饰与替换为该毒株的反向遗传研究打下了基础。     

黄病毒基因组非编码区的结构与功能研究进展

黄病毒科黄病毒属是由一组含单股正链RNA基因组的囊膜病毒组成,包括登革病毒、流行性乙型脑炎病毒、寨卡病毒、西尼罗病毒、黄热病病毒等,经由虫媒传播,可引起人类和动物的严重虫媒病毒病。黄病毒基因组由1个开放阅读框、5′非编码区和3′非编码区三部分组成。5′和3′非编码区含有病毒基因组复制所必需的启动元件;高度结构化的3′非编码区负责黄病毒亚基因组RNA的产生,从而有助于病毒逃避宿主免疫反应;此外3′非编码区还可作为疫苗研究的靶标。鉴于非编码区在黄病毒的蛋白翻译、基因组复制和免疫调节中发挥的重要作用,本文就黄病毒基因组非编码区的结构与功能最新研究进展作一简要综述。     

猪繁殖与呼吸综合征病毒S1株基因组序列测定和分析

应用RT-PCR方法分段扩增出PRRSV上海分离株S1毒株的4条基因大片段,扩增后的产物分别克隆于pCR-XL-TOPO载体鉴定后测序,同时应用RACE方法对S1毒株的3′和5′基因末端进行了成功的扩增并克隆于pMD-18T载体进行测序,按顺序将这些序列进行拼接得到PRRSVS1株全基因组cDNA序列。测序结果表明PRRSVS1株基因组全长15441bp,包含9个开放式阅读框,5′UTR含有189nt,3′端UTR含有181nt,其中包含30ntPoly(A)。基因组序列分析结果显示该病毒与ATCCVR-2332和BJ-4分离株的核苷酸同源性分别99.5%和99.6%。与另一国内分离株CH-1a的核苷酸同源性为90.8%。     

构建单纯疱疹病毒基因组Bam HIC片段上有插入突变的重组病毒

单纯疱疹病毒(GSV)是重要的人类DNA病毒。国内外学者正在对其基因结构、功能和基因调控机制进行探索,以及利用其作为病毒载体表达外源基因研制基因工程疫苗等,并且已经取得了一定的成绩。多年来,尽管对HSV-1的分子遗传学做了包括序列分析在内的大量研究,但对HSV基因组许多部位的功能,它们相互之间的关系,特别是某特定部位对活病毒生物特性的作用(病毒生长、繁殖、毒力等),所知很少。为了深入了解HSV-1基因组中Bam H I C片段这一未知部分的功能,我们对它进行了克隆、次级克隆和酶谱分析,并且利用胸腺嘧啶核苷激酶基因—小Mu噬菌体系统(TK-mM)组建了在HSV-1的Eam H I C片段上有TK-mM插入的重组质粒。本文报道利用组建的重组质粒DNA和提纯的TK-HSV-1毒株DNA共同转染细胞,获得了在HSV-1基因组Burn H I C片段上有插入突变的重组病毒。     

鹅源新城疫病毒ZJI株基因组cDNA克隆的序列修饰*

将鹅源新城疫病毒ZJI株全基因组cDNA克隆通过酶切切下包含T7启动子区域和转录载体的片段,将其自身环化后获得约6.5kb的质粒。设计引物,利用基因定点突变技术,在此质粒上T7启动子与NDV Leader序列之间突变插入额外的3个G碱基,将此突变最终引入到原基因组cDNA克隆中。应用RT-PCR技术从尿囊液中扩增NDV基因组F/HN基因区域部分片段,利用限制性内切酶BsmB I将扩增片段连接,最终将原cDNA克隆中相应片段替换下。测序结果表明,原基因组cDNA克隆中特定位置碱基     

小麦丛矮病毒基因组5′端尾随区的克隆及序列分析

根据已知的弹状病毒聚合酶Ｌ蛋白分子中一段高保守的８个氨基酸顺序ＥＧＬＲＱＫＧＷ,合成简并的２４核苷酸引物,用锚定ＰＣＲ方法从小麦丛矮病毒（ＷＲＳＶ）基因组中扩增出包含全长５′尾随（ｔｒａｉｌｅｒ）区和部分Ｌ蛋白基因的ＤＮＡ片段,并克隆到ｐＵＣ１９Ｔ载体上,经测序,获得全长的ＷＲＳＶ基因组５′尾随区顺序。     

貉源阿留申病毒全基因组测序及末端序列分子特征分析

貉源阿留申病毒(Raccoon dog and arctic fox amdoparvovirus,RFAV)是自然感染貉和蓝狐的新种阿留申病毒(Amdoparvovirus),为测序RFAV全基因组序列,预测分析RFAV末端发夹结构序列分子特征。本研究采用分段克隆成功获得3株长4832nt、4827nt、4830nt的RFAV全基因组序列,分别命名为RFAV-Y9J、RFAV-RD15、RFAV-HS-R,利用在线软件预测RFAV末端序列二级结构,并与水貂阿留申病毒(AMDV)末端序列进行同源性比对。结果显示阿留申病毒种间、种内3’末端基因组序列保守性强,均存在116nt的Y型发夹结构;RFAV-Y9J与RFAV-RD15毒株5′末端分别存在310nt、305nt的U型发夹结构,RFAV和AMDV种内5′末端基因组序列保守性强,而种间5′末端基因组序列有较大变异。本研究首次完整测序了RFAV的3′和5′末端序列,为其他种阿留申病毒的末端序列扩增提供一种有效方法,为构建RFAV的全基因组序列感染性克隆奠定了基础。     

水稻瘤矮病毒基因组S9片段的基因结构特征

应用RT-PCR技术克隆了水稻瘤矮病毒(RGDV)中国广东信宜分离物(RGDV-C)的基因组S9片段,测定了全序列并进行了生物信息学分析。结果表明,RGDV-C S9片段全长共有1202bp(登录号AY556483),含有一个长的开放阅读框,这一开放阅读框编码一个由323个氨基酸残基组成的多肽,推测分子量约35.6kDa,与泰国分离物(RGDV-T)的全序列相比,它们的核苷酸长度相等,核苷酸同源性为98.1%,氨基酸同源性为98.5%。RGDV S9片段编码的Pns9蛋白在植物呼肠孤病毒属内未发现同源蛋白,其功能尚待确定。利用NCBI的BLAST查找与比较,发现Pns9与伯氏疏螺旋体(Borrelia burgdorferi)ATP依赖的Clp蛋白水解酶组分[ATP-dependent Clp prote-ase proteolytic component(clpP-1)]有21.8%的氨基酸序列同源性。     

水稻瘤矮病毒基因组S9片段的基因结构特征

应用RT-PCR技术克隆了水稻瘤矮病毒(RGDV)中国广东信宜分离物(RGDV-C)的基因组S9片段,测定了全序列并进行了生物信息学分析.结果表明,RGDV-C S9片段全长共有1202bp(登录号AY556483),含有一个长的开放阅读框,这一开放阅读框编码一个由323个氨基酸残基组成的多肽,推测分子量约35.6kDa,与泰国分离物(RGDV-T)的全序列相比,它们的核苷酸长度相等,核苷酸同源性为98.1%,氨基酸同源性为98.5%.RGDV S9片段编码的Pns9蛋白在植物呼肠孤病毒属内未发现同源蛋白,其功能尚待确定.利用NCBI的BLAST查找与比较,发现Pns9与伯氏疏螺旋体(Borrelia burgdorferi)ATP依赖的Clp蛋白水解酶组分[ATP-dependent Clp protease proteolytic component(clpP-1)]有21.8%的氨基酸序列同源性.     

Extreme ends of the genome are conserved and rearranged in the defective interfering RNAs of semliki forest virus

We have analyzed Semliki Forest virus defective interfering RNA molecules, generated by serial undiluted passaging of the virus in baby hamster kidney cells. The 42 S RNA genome (about 13 kb ²) has been greatly deleted to generate the DI RNAs, which are heterogeneous both in size (about 2 kb) and sequence content. The DI RNAs offer a system for exploring binding sites for RNA polymerase and encapsidation signals, which must have been conserved in them since they are replicated and packaged. In order to study the structural organization of DI RNAs, and to analyze which regions from the genome have been conserved, we have determined the nucleotide sequences of (1) a 2.3 kb long DI RNA molecule, DI309, (2) 3′-terminal sequences (each about 0.3 kb) of two other DI RNAs, and (3) the nucleotide sequence of 0.4 kb at the extreme 5′ end of the 42 S RNA genome.The DI309 molecule consists of a duplicated region with flanking unique terminal sequences. A 273-nucleotide sequence is present in four copies per molecule. The extreme 5′-terminal nucleotide sequence of the 42 S RNA genome is shown to contain domains that are conserved in the two DI RNAs of known structure: DI309, and the previously sequenced DI301 (Lehtovaara et al., 1981). Here we report which terminal genome sequences are conserved in the DI RNAs, and how they have been modified, rearranged or amplified.     

Hypothesis of initiation of DNA methylation de novo and allelic exclusion by small RNAs

We have established that 5′-CG-3′ dinucleotide and 5′-CNG-3′ trinucleotide are found in published sequences of small interfering RNA and microRNA more often than they should be in random DNA sequences. This circumstance indicates the important biological role played by 5′-CG-3′ dinucleotides and 5′-CNG-3′ trinucleotides in small RNA sequences. We suggest that small RNAs containing these di- and trinucleotides participate in the creation of chromatin marks of epigenetic information through a highly specific search for repressible DNA sequences and through the initiation of the methylation de novo of 5′-CG-3′ and 5′-CNG-3′ sites in DNA fragments appearing to be bound complementary to small RNAs. Several genes can be inactivated simultaneously if they contain the motif recognized by small RNA. Allelic exclusion appears, in our opinion, as a result of initiation by small RNAs of DNA methylation de novo of all but one of the alleles that exist in the cell. The predecessor of this small RNA is transcribed from the antiparallel allele chain. Alleles whose antiparallel chains are less actively read by RNA polymerase, which, as we suggest, in the process of transcribing, releases DNA from small RNA bound to it, are inactivated. However, the quantity of small RNA transcribed from only one allele is insufficient to overcome the level above which the repression process of this allele is initiated de novo.     

Specific enrichment of miRNAs in Arabidopsis thaliana infected with Tobacco mosaic virus.

RNA silencing is a broadly conserved machinery and is involved in many biological events. Small RNAs are key molecules in RNA silencing pathway that guide sequence-specific gene regulations and chromatin modifications. The silencing machinery works as an anti-viral defense in virus-infected plants. It is generally accepted that virus-specific small interfering (si) RNAs bind to the viral genome and trigger its cleavage. Previously, we have cloned and obtained sequences of small RNAs from Arabidopsis thaliana infected or uninfected with crucifer Tobacco mosaic virus. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) accumulated to a higher percentage of total small RNAs in the virus-infected plants. This was partly because the viral replication protein binds to the miRNA/miRNA* duplexes. In the present study, we mapped the sequences of small RNAs other than virus-derived siRNAs to the Arabidopsis genome and assigned each small RNA. It was demonstrated that only miRNAs increased as a result of viral infection. Furthermore, some newly identified miRNAs and miRNA candidates were found from the virus-infected plants despite a limited number of examined sequences. We propose that it is advantageous to use virus-infected plants as a source for cloning and identifying new miRNAs.     

Nucleotide sequences of influenza virus segments 1 and 3 reveal mosaic structure of a small viral RNA segment

Defective interfering RNAs of influenza virus are small segments derived from viral segments 1, 2 and 3. We present here the complete nucleotide sequences of segments 1 and 3 from the human influenza strain A/PR/8/34 and deduce that the sequence of a small RNA segment from A/NT/60/68, apparently a defective interfering RNA, is derived from five separate regions in segment 3 and from one region in segment 1. These regions, which are located near the termini of the two parental segments, are arranged in the small RNA segment in an alternating fashion: thus a region derived from near a 5′ terminus is adjacent to a region derived from near a 3′ terminus. We propose that the small segment is generated during positive strand synthesis as a result of the viral polymerase pausing at uridine-rich sequences in the template and reinitiating synthesis at another site.