scholarly journals Viral Genome-Linked Protein (VPg) Controls Accumulation and Phloem-Loading of a Potyvirus in Inoculated Potato Leaves

2002 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 138-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minna-Liisa Rajamäki ◽  
Jari P. T. Valkonen
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Viral Genome ◽  
Systemic Infection ◽  
Phloem Loading ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Solanum Commersonii ◽  
Virus Accumulation ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Critical Boundary

The viral protein covalently linked to the 5′ end of the plus-sense, single-stranded RNA genome of potyviruses (genus Potyvirus) can be an avirulence determinant in incompatible potyvirus-host combinations in which the resistance prevents systemic virus infection. The mechanism is not well known. This study shows that virus strain-specific resistance to systemic infection with Potato virus A (PVA) in Solanum commersonii is overcome by a single amino acid (aa) substitution, His118Tyr, in the viral genome-linked protein (VPg). Virus localization and other experiments revealed that Tyr118 controls phloem loading of PVA. The critical boundary may be constituted in phloem parenchyma, companion cells, or both. Tyr118 also controls the cellular level of virus accumulation in infected leaves, including phloem cells. Amino acid substitutions at three additional positions of the central part (aa 116) and C terminus (aa 185) of the VPg and of the N terminus of the 6K2 protein (aa 5) affect virus accumulation and rate of systemic infection but are not sufficient for phloem loading of PVA. These data, together with previous studies, indicate that the PVA VPg aa residues crucial for systemic infection are host specific. Also, our data and previous studies on other potyvirus-host species combinations indicate that the central part of the VPg is a domain with universal importance to virus-host interactions required for systemic invasion of plants with potyviruses.

scholarly journals Two functionally distinct RNA-binding motifs in the regulatory domain of the protein kinase DAI.

1995 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 358-364 ◽  
Author(s):  
S R Green ◽  
L Manche ◽  
M B Mathews
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Protein Kinase ◽  
Rna Binding ◽  
Rna Binding Proteins ◽  
Alpha Helix ◽  
Binding Domain ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Double Stranded Rna ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Rna Binding Domain

The RNA-binding domain of the protein kinase DAI, the double-stranded RNA inhibitor of translation, contains two repeats of a motif that is also found in a number of other RNA-binding proteins. This motif consists of 67 amino acid residues and is predicted to contain a positively charged alpha helix at its C terminus. We have analyzed the effects of equivalent single amino acid changes in three conserved residues distributed over each copy of the motif. Mutants in the C-terminal portion of either repeat were severely defective, indicating that both copies of the motif are essential for RNA binding. Changes in the N-terminal and central parts of the motif were more debilitating if they were made in the first motif than in the second, suggesting that the first motif is the more important for RNA binding and that the second motif is structurally more flexible. When the second motif was replaced by a duplicate of the first motif, the ectopic copy retained its greater sensitivity to mutation, implying that the two motifs have distinct functions with respect to the process of RNA binding. Furthermore, the mutations have the same effect on the binding of double-stranded RNA and VA RNA, consistent with the existence of a single RNA-binding domain for both activating and inhibitory RNAs.

scholarly journals Monoclonal Antibodies Detect a Single Amino Acid Difference Between the Coat Proteins of Soilborne Wheat Mosaic Virus Isolates: Implications for Virus Structure

1997 ◽  
Vol 87 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianping Chen ◽  
Lesley Torrance ◽  
Graham H. Cowan ◽  
Stuart A. MacFarlane ◽  
Gerald Stubbs ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Monoclonal Antibodies ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Mosaic Virus ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Computer Assisted ◽  
Amino Acid Difference ◽  
Coat Proteins ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Readthrough Protein

Four monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were prepared against an isolate of soilborne wheat mosaic furovirus from Oklahoma (SBWMV Okl-7). Three MAbs had different reactivities in tests on SBWMV isolates from Nebraska (Lab1), France, and Japan. One MAb (SCR 133) also reacted with oat golden stripe furovirus. None of the MAbs cross-reacted with other rod-shaped viruses including beet necrotic yellow vein furovirus, potato mop-top furovirus, and tobacco rattle tobravirus. Sequence analysis of nucleotides between 334 and 1,000 of RNA 2, the region that encodes the coat protein (CP) and the first 44 amino acids of a readthrough protein, of the four SBWMV isolates revealed up to 27 base changes from the published sequence of a Nebraska field isolate of SBWMV. Most changes were translationally silent, but some caused differences of one to three amino acids in residues located near either the N- or C-terminus of the CPs of the different isolates. Two further single amino acid changes were found at the beginning of the readthrough domain of the CP-readthrough protein. Some of these amino acid changes could be discriminated by MAbs SCR 132, SCR 133, and SCR 134. Peptide scanning (Pepscan) analysis indicated that the epitope recognized by SCR 134 is located near the N-terminus of the CP. SCR 132 was deduced to react with a discontinuous CP epitope near the C-terminus, and SCR 133 reacted with a surface-located continuous epitope also near the C-terminus. Predictions of CP structure from computer-assisted three-dimensional model building, by comparison with the X-ray fiber diffraction structure of tobacco mosaic virus, suggested that the three CP amino acids found to differ between isolates of SBWMV were located near the viral surface and were in regions predicted to be antigenic.

scholarly journals A Single-Amino-Acid Substitution in a Polymerase Protein of an H5N1 Influenza Virus Is Associated with Systemic Infection and Impaired T-Cell Activation in Mice

2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (21) ◽  
pp. 11102-11115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie L. Fornek ◽  
Laura Gillim-Ross ◽  
Celia Santos ◽  
Victoria Carter ◽  
Jerrold M. Ward ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Influenza Virus ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
T Cell ◽  
Amino Acid Substitution ◽  
Systemic Infection ◽  
Influenza Viruses ◽  
Single Amino Acid Substitution ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
H5n1 Influenza

ABSTRACT The transmission of H5N1 influenza viruses from birds to humans poses a significant public health threat. A substitution of glutamic acid for lysine at position 627 of the PB2 protein of H5N1 viruses has been identified as a virulence determinant. We utilized the BALB/c mouse model of H5N1 infection to examine how this substitution affects virus-host interactions and leads to systemic infection. Mice infected with H5N1 viruses containing lysine at amino acid 627 in the PB2 protein exhibited an increased severity of lesions in the lung parenchyma and the spleen, increased apoptosis in the lungs, and a decrease in oxygen saturation. Gene expression profiling revealed that T-cell receptor activation was impaired at 2 days postinfection (dpi) in the lungs of mice infected with these viruses. The inflammatory response was highly activated in the lungs of mice infected with these viruses and was sustained at 4 dpi. In the spleen, immune-related processes including NK cell cytotoxicity and antigen presentation were highly activated by 2 dpi. These differences are not attributable solely to differences in viral replication in the lungs but to an inefficient immune response early in infection as well. The timing and magnitude of the immune response to highly pathogenic influenza viruses is critical in determining the outcome of infection. The disruption of these factors by a single-amino-acid substitution in a polymerase protein of an influenza virus is associated with severe disease and correlates with the spread of the virus to extrapulmonary sites.

scholarly journals A Single Amino Acid Substitution in a Segment of the CA Protein within Gag That Has Similarity to Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Blocks Infectivity of a Human Endogenous Retrovirus K Provirus in the Human Genome

2008 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 1105-1114 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Heslin ◽  
Pablo Murcia ◽  
Frederick Arnaud ◽  
Koenraad Van Doorslaer ◽  
Massimo Palmarini ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Human Genome ◽  
Particle Production ◽  
Endogenous Retrovirus ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Human Endogenous Retrovirus ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Immunodeficiency Virus

ABSTRACT Human endogenous retrovirus K (HERV-K) is the most intact retrovirus in the human genome. However, no single HERV-K provirus in the human genome today appears to be infectious. Since the Gag protein is the central component for the production of retrovirus particles, we investigated the abilities of Gag from two HERV-K proviruses to support production of virus-like particles and viral infectivity. HERV-K113 has full-length open reading frames for all viral proteins, while HERV-K101 has a full-length gag open reading frame and is expressed in human male germ cell tumors. The Gag of HERV-K101 allowed production of viral particles and infectivity, although at lower levels than observed with a consensus sequence Gag. Thus, including HERV-K109, at least two HERV-K proviruses in human genome today have functional Gag proteins. In contrast, HERV-K113 Gag supported only very low levels of particle production, and no infectivity was detectable due to a single amino acid substitution (I516M) near the extreme C terminus of the CA protein within Gag. The sequence of this portion of HERV-K CA showed similarities to that of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and other primate immunodeficiency viruses. The extreme C terminus of CA may be a general determinant of retrovirus particle production. In addition, precise mapping of the defects in HERV-K proviruses as was done here identifies the key polymorphisms that need to be analyzed to assess the possible existence of infectious HERV-K alleles within the human population.

scholarly journals Positive and Negative Regulation of Poly(A) Nuclease

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (12) ◽  
pp. 5521-5533 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. Mangus ◽  
Matthew C. Evans ◽  
Nathan S. Agrin ◽  
Mandy Smith ◽  
Preetam Gongidi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Protein Interactions ◽  
Binding Pocket ◽  
Negative Regulation ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Carboxy Terminus ◽  
Protein Protein Interactions ◽  
C Terminus

ABSTRACT PAN, a yeast poly(A) nuclease, plays an important nuclear role in the posttranscriptional maturation of mRNA poly(A) tails. The activity of this enzyme is dependent on its Pan2p and Pan3p subunits, as well as the presence of poly(A)-binding protein (Pab1p). We have identified and characterized the associated network of factors controlling the maturation of mRNA poly(A) tails in yeast and defined its relevant protein-protein interactions. Pan3p, a positive regulator of PAN activity, interacts with Pab1p, thus providing substrate specificity for this nuclease. Pab1p also regulates poly(A) tail trimming by interacting with Pbp1p, a factor that appears to negatively regulate PAN. Pan3p and Pbp1p both interact with themselves and with the C terminus of Pab1p. However, the domains required for Pan3p and Pbp1p binding on Pab1p are distinct. Single amino acid changes that disrupt Pan3p interaction with Pab1p have been identified and define a binding pocket in helices 2 and 3 of Pab1p's carboxy terminus. The importance of these amino acids for Pab1p-Pan3p interaction, and poly(A) tail regulation, is underscored by experiments demonstrating that strains harboring substitutions in these residues accumulate mRNAs with long poly(A) tails in vivo.

scholarly journals The tip of the VgrG spike is essential to functional type VI secretion assembly in Acinetobacter baumannii

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juvenal Lopez ◽  
Pek Man Ly ◽  
Mario F. Feldman
Keyword(s):  
Multidrug Resistance ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Acinetobacter Baumannii ◽  
Clinical Isolate ◽  
Single Amino Acid ◽  
Host Bacterium ◽  
Amino Acid Mutation ◽  
Type Vi Secretion ◽  
C Terminus ◽  
Single Amino Acid Mutation

AbstractThe type VI secretion system (T6SS) is a critical weapon in bacterial warfare between Gram-negative bacteria. Although invaluable for niche establishment, this machine represents an energetic burden to its host bacterium. Acinetobacter baumannii is an opportunistic pathogen that poses a serious threat to public health due to its high rates of multidrug resistance. In some A. baumannii strains, the T6SS is transcriptionally downregulated by large multidrug-resistance plasmids. Other strains, such as the clinical isolate AbCAN2, express T6SS-related genes but lack T6SS activity under laboratory conditions, despite not harboring these plasmids. This suggests that alternative mechanisms exist to repress the T6SS. Here, we employed a transposon mutagenesis approach in AbCAN2 to identify novel T6SS repressors. Our screen revealed that the T6SS of this strain is inhibited by a homolog of VgrG, an essential structural component of all T6SSs reported to date. We named this protein inhibitory VgrG (VgrGi). Biochemical and in silico analyses demonstrated that the unprecedented inhibitory capability of VgrGi is due to a single amino acid mutation in the widely conserved C-terminal domain of unknown function DUF2345. We also show that unlike in other bacteria, the C-terminus of VgrG is essential for functional T6SS assembly in A. baumannii. Our study provides insight into the architectural requirements underlying functional assembly of the T6SS of A. baumannii. We propose that T6SS-inactivating point mutations are beneficial to the host bacterium, as they eliminate the energy cost associated with maintaining a functional T6SS, which appears to be unnecessary for A. baumannii virulence.ImportanceDespite the clinical relevance of A. baumannii, little is known about its fundamental biology. Here, we show that a single amino acid mutation in VgrG, a critical T6SS structural protein, abrogates T6SS function. Given that this mutation was found in a clinical isolate, we propose that the T6SS of A. baumannii is likely not involved in virulence, an idea supported by multiple genomic analyses showing that the majority of clinical A. baumannii strains lack proteins essential to the T6SS. We also show that, unlike in other species, the C-terminus of VgrG is a unique architectural requirement for functional T6SS assembly in A. baumannii, suggesting that over evolutionary time, bacteria have developed changes to their T6SS architecture, leading to specialized systems.

scholarly journals The 6K2 Protein and the VPg of Potato Virus A Are Determinants of Systemic Infection in Nicandra physaloides

1999 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 1074-1081 ◽  
Author(s):  
Minna-Liisa Rajamäki ◽  
Jari P. T. Valkonen
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acid ◽  
Potato Virus ◽  
Viral Genome ◽  
Recombinant Virus ◽  
Systemic Infection ◽  
Site Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Directed Mutagenesis ◽  
Cdna Clones ◽  
Post Inoculation ◽  
Potato Virus A

Infection with the isolate PVA-M of potato virus A (PVA; genus Potyvirus) is restricted to the inoculated leaves of Nicandra physaloides (Solanaceae), whereas the isolate PVA-B11 infects plants systemically by 10 days post inoculation. Resistance to systemic infection was shown to develop during plant growth. A recombinant virus (B11-M) in which a 1,208-nucleotide sequence of the full-length cDNA clone of PVA-B11 was replaced with the corresponding sequence from PVA-M displayed a phenotype similar to that of PVA-M. The replaced sequence contained four amino acid differences between the two isolates: one in the 6K2 protein and three in the viral genome-linked protein (VPg). Site-directed mutagenesis of the cDNA clones and inoculation of the mutants to N. physaloides indicated that the amino acid substitutions of Met5Val in the 6K2 protein or Leu185Ser in the VPg permitted vascular movement and systemic infection. However, resistance was only partially overcome by these changes, since systemic infection proceeded at a slower rate than with PVA-B11. The amino acid substitution Val116Met in the VPg alone was sufficient to overcome resistance and recover the phenotype of the isolate PVA-B11. These data indicated that both the 6K2 protein and the VPg were avirulence determinants of PVA-M in N. physaloides and suggested a possibly coordinated function of them in the vascular movement of PVA.

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