scholarly journals Gymnotic Delivery of LNA Mixmers Targeting Viral SREs Induces HIV-1 mRNA Degradation

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 1088 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Hillebrand ◽  
Philipp Ostermann ◽  
Lisa Müller ◽  
Daniel Degrandi ◽  
Steffen Erkelenz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Particle Production ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Rna Degradation ◽  
Locked Nucleic Acid ◽  
Target Sequence ◽  
Viral Particle Production ◽  
Splicing Regulatory Elements ◽  
Alternatively Spliced ◽  
Infected Cells ◽  
Hiv 1

Transcription of the HIV-1 provirus generates a viral pre-mRNA, which is alternatively spliced into more than 50 HIV-1 mRNAs encoding all viral proteins. Regulation of viral alternative splice site usage includes the presence of splicing regulatory elements (SREs) which can dramatically impact RNA expression and HIV-1 replication when mutated. Recently, we were able to show that two viral SREs, GI3-2 and ESEtat, are important players in the generation of viral vif, vpr and tat mRNAs. Furthermore, we demonstrated that masking these SREs by transfected locked nucleic acid (LNA) mixmers affect the viral splicing pattern and viral particle production. With regard to the development of future therapeutic LNA mixmer-based antiretroviral approaches, we delivered the GI3-2 and the ESEtat LNA mixmers “nakedly”, without the use of transfection reagents (gymnosis) into HIV-1 infected cells. Surprisingly, we observed that gymnotically-delivered LNA mixmers accumulated in the cytoplasm, and seemed to co-localize with GW bodies and induced degradation of mRNAs containing their LNA target sequence. The GI3-2 and the ESEtat LNA-mediated RNA degradation resulted in abrogation of viral replication in HIV-1 infected Jurkat and PM1 cells as well as in PBMCs.

scholarly journals Analysis of Competing HIV-1 Splice Donor Sites Uncovers a Tight Cluster of Splicing Regulatory Elements within Exon 2/2b

2017 ◽  
Vol 91 (14) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna-Lena Brillen ◽  
Lara Walotka ◽  
Frank Hillebrand ◽  
Lisa Müller ◽  
Marek Widera ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Protein Expression ◽  
Viral Replication ◽  
Particle Production ◽  
Mutational Analysis ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Mass Spectrometry Analysis ◽  
Start Codon ◽  
Exon 2 ◽  
Hiv 1

ABSTRACT The HIV-1 accessory protein Vif is essential for viral replication by counteracting the host restriction factor APOBEC3G (A3G), and balanced levels of both proteins are required for efficient viral replication. Noncoding exons 2/2b contain the Vif start codon between their alternatively used splice donors 2 and 2b (D2 and D2b). For vif mRNA, intron 1 must be removed while intron 2 must be retained. Thus, splice acceptor 1 (A1) must be activated by U1 snRNP binding to either D2 or D2b, while splicing at D2 or D2b must be prevented. Here, we unravel the complex interactions between previously known and novel components of the splicing regulatory network regulating HIV-1 exon 2/2b inclusion in viral mRNAs. In particular, using RNA pulldown experiments and mass spectrometry analysis, we found members of the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoparticle (hnRNP) A/B family binding to a novel splicing regulatory element (SRE), the exonic splicing silencer ESS2b, and the splicing regulatory proteins Tra2/SRSF10 binding to the nearby exonic splicing enhancer ESE2b. Using a minigene reporter, we performed bioinformatics HEXplorer-guided mutational analysis to narrow down SRE motifs affecting splice site selection between D2 and D2b. Eventually, the impacts of these SREs on the viral splicing pattern and protein expression were exhaustively analyzed in viral particle production and replication experiments. Masking of these protein binding sites by use of locked nucleic acids (LNAs) impaired Vif expression and viral replication. IMPORTANCE Based on our results, we propose a model in which a dense network of SREs regulates vif mRNA and protein expression, crucial to maintain viral replication within host cells with varying A3G levels and at different stages of infection. This regulation is maintained by several serine/arginine-rich splicing factors (SRSF) and hnRNPs binding to those elements. Targeting this cluster of SREs with LNAs may lead to the development of novel effective therapeutic strategies.

scholarly journals An Essential Role of INI1/hSNF5 Chromatin Remodeling Protein in HIV-1 Posttranscriptional Events and Gag/Gag-Pol Stability

2016 ◽  
Vol 90 (21) ◽  
pp. 9889-9904 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annalena La Porte ◽  
Jennifer Cano ◽  
Xuhong Wu ◽  
Doyel Mitra ◽  
Ganjam V. Kalpana
Keyword(s):  
Particle Production ◽  
Protein Levels ◽  
Mediated Effects ◽  
Viral Particle Production ◽  
Novel Strategy ◽  
The Stability ◽  
Novel Therapeutic Strategies ◽  
Hiv 1 ◽  
Rna Levels

ABSTRACTINI1/hSNF5/SMARCB1/BAF47 is an HIV-specific integrase (IN)-binding protein that influences HIV-1 transcription and particle production. INI1 binds to SAP18 (Sin3a-associated protein, 18 kDa), and both INI1 and SAP18 are incorporated into HIV-1 virions. To determine the significance of INI1 and the INI1-SAP18 interaction during HIV-1 replication, we isolated a panel ofSAP18-interaction-defective (SID)-INI1 mutants using a yeast reverse two-hybrid screen. The SID-INI1 mutants, which retained the ability to bind to IN, cMYC, and INI1 but were impaired for binding to SAP18, were tested for their effects on HIV-1 particle production. SID-INI1 dramatically reduced the intracellular Gag/Gag-Pol protein levels and, in addition, decreased viral particle production. The SID-INI1-mediated effects were less dramatic intranscomplementation assays using IN deletion mutant viruses with Vpr-reverse transcriptase (RT)-IN. SID-INI1 did not inhibit long-terminal-repeat (LTR)-mediated transcription, but it marginally decreased the steady-stategagRNA levels, suggesting a posttranscriptional effect. Pulse-chase analysis indicated that in SID-INI1-expressing cells, the pr55Gag levels decreased rapidly. RNA interference analysis indicated that small hairpin RNA (shRNA)-mediated knockdown ofINI1reduced the intracellular Gag/Gag-Pol levels and further inhibited HIV-1 particle production. These results suggest that SID-INI1 mutants inhibit multiple stages of posttranscriptional events of HIV-1 replication, including intracellular Gag/Gag-Pol RNA and protein levels, which in turn inhibits assembly and particle production. Interfering INI1 leads to a decrease in particle production and Gag/Gag-Pol protein levels. Understanding the role of INI1 and SAP18 in HIV-1 replication is likely to provide novel insight into the stability of Gag/Gag-Pol, which may lead to the development of novel therapeutic strategies to inhibit HIV-1 late events.IMPORTANCESignificant gaps exist in our current understanding of the mechanisms and host factors that influence HIV-1 posttranscriptional events, includinggagRNA levels, Gag/Gag-Pol protein levels, assembly, and particle production. Our previous studies suggested that the IN-binding host factor INI1 plays a role in HIV-1 assembly. An ectopically expressed minimal IN-binding domain of INI1, S6, potently and selectively inhibited HIV-1 Gag/Gag-Pol trafficking and particle production. However, whether or not endogenous INI1 and its interacting partners, such as SAP18, are required for late events was unknown. Here, we report that endogenous INI1 and its interaction with SAP18 are necessary to maintain intracellular levels of Gag/Gag-Pol and for particle production. Interfering INI1 or the INI1-SAP18 interaction leads to the impairment of these processes, suggesting a novel strategy for inhibiting posttranscriptional events of HIV-1 replication.

scholarly journals Splicing Regulatory Elements within tat Exon 2 of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) Are Characteristic of Group M but Not Group O HIV-1 Strains

1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (12) ◽  
pp. 9764-9772 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia S. Bilodeau ◽  
Jeffrey K. Domsic ◽  
C. Martin Stoltzfus
Keyword(s):  
Human Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type ◽  
Splice Site ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Splice Sites ◽  
Exon 2 ◽  
Immunodeficiency Virus ◽  
Splicing Regulatory Elements ◽  
Hiv 1

ABSTRACT In the NL4-3 strain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), regulatory elements responsible for the relative efficiencies of alternative splicing at the tat, rev, and theenv/nef 3′ splice sites (A3 through A5) are contained within the region of tat exon 2 and its flanking sequences. Two elements affecting splicing of tat, rev, and env/nef mRNAs have been localized to this region. First, an exon splicing silencer (ESS2) in NL4-3, located approximately 70 nucleotides downstream from the 3′ splice site used to generatetat mRNA, acts specifically to inhibit splicing at this splice site. Second, the A4b 3′ splice site, which is the most downstream of the three rev 3′ splice sites, also serves as an element inhibiting splicing at the env/nef 3′ splice site A5. These elements are conserved in some but not all HIV-1 strains, and the effects of these sequence changes on splicing have been investigated in cell transfection and in vitro splicing assays. SF2, another clade B virus and member of the major (group M) viruses, has several sequence changes within ESS2 and uses a differentrev 3′ splice site. However, splicing is inhibited by the two elements similarly to NL4-3. As with the NL4-3 strain, the SF2 A4b AG dinucleotide overlaps an A5 branchpoint, and thus the inhibitory effect may result from competition of the same site for two different splicing factors. The sequence changes in ANT70C, a member of the highly divergent outlier (group O) viruses, are more extensive, and ESS2 activity in tat exon 2 is not present. Group O viruses also lack the rev 3′ splice site A4b, which is conserved in all group M viruses. Mutagenesis of the most downstream rev3′ splice site of ANT70C does not increase splicing at A5, and all of the branchpoints are upstream of the two rev 3′ splice sites. Thus, splicing regulatory elements in tat exon 2 which are characteristic of most group M HIV-1 strains are not present in group O HIV-1 strains.

scholarly journals Intragenic proviral elements support transcription of defective HIV-1 proviruses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Kuniholm ◽  
Elise Armstrong ◽  
Brandy Bernabe ◽  
Carolyn Coote ◽  
Anna Berenson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
T Cells ◽  
Cd4 T Cells ◽  
Treatment Interruption ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
People Living With Hiv ◽  
Latently Infected ◽  
Infected Cells ◽  
Living With Hiv ◽  
Hiv 1

ABSTRACTHIV-establishes a persistent proviral reservoir by integrating into the genome of infected host cells. Current antiretroviral treatments do not target this persistent population of proviruses which include latently infected cells that upon treatment interruption can be reactivated to contribute to HIV-1 rebound. Deep sequencing of persistent HIV proviruses has revealed that greater than 90% of integrated HIV genomes are defective and unable to produce infectious virions. We hypothesized that intragenic elements in the HIV genome support transcription of aberrant HIV-1 RNAs from defective proviruses that lack long terminal repeats (LTRs). Using an intact provirus detection assay, we observed that resting CD4+ T cells and monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) are biased towards generating defective HIV-1 proviruses. Multiplex reverse transcription digital drop PCR identified Env and Nef transcripts which lacked 5’ untranslated regions (UTR) in acutely infected CD4+ T cells and MDMs indicating transcripts are generated that do not utilize the promoter within the LTR. 5’UTR-deficient Env transcripts were also identified in a cohort of people living with HIV (PLWH) on ART, suggesting that these aberrant RNAs are produced in vivo. Using 5’ rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE), we mapped the start site of these transcripts within the Env gene. This region bound several cellular transcription factors and functioned as a transcriptional regulatory element that could support transcription and translation of downstream HIV-1 RNAs. These studies provide mechanistic insights into how defective HIV-1 proviruses are persistently expressed to potentially drive inflammation in PLWH.Author SummaryPeople living with HIV establish a persistent reservoir which includes latently infected cells that fuel viral rebound upon treatment interruption. However, the majority of HIV-1 genomes in these persistently infected cells are defective. Whether these defective HIV genomes are expressed and whether they contribute to HIV associated diseases including accelerated aging, neurodegenerative symptoms, and cardiovascular diseases are still outstanding questions. In this paper, we demonstrate that acute infection of macrophages and resting T cells is biased towards generating defective viruses which are expressed by DNA regulatory elements in the HIV genome. These studies describe an alternative mechanism for chronic expression of HIV genomes.

scholarly journals HEXploring of the HIV-1 genome allows landscaping of new potential splicing regulatory elements

Retrovirology ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Steffen Erkelenz ◽  
Stephan Theiss ◽  
Marianne Otte ◽  
Marek Widera ◽  
Jan Otto Peter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Splicing Regulatory Elements ◽  
Hiv 1

scholarly journals Quantitative prediction of variant effects on alternative splicing using endogenous pre-messenger RNA structure probing

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayashree Kumar ◽  
Lela Lackey ◽  
Justin M. Waldern ◽  
Abhishek Dey ◽  
David H. Mathews ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rna Structure ◽  
Messenger Rna ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Quantitative Prediction ◽  
Mrna Structure ◽  
Splicing Regulatory Elements ◽  
Alternatively Spliced ◽  
Endogenous Precursor ◽  
Precursor Mrna

AbstractSplicing is a highly regulated process that depends on numerous factors. It is particularly challenging to quantitatively predict how a mutation will affect precursor messenger RNA (mRNA) structure and the subsequent functional consequences. Here we use a novel Mutational Profiling (-MaP) methodology to obtain highly reproducible endogenous precursor and mature mRNA structural probing data in vivo. We use these data to estimate Boltzmann suboptimal ensembles, and predict the structural consequences of mutations on precursor mRNA structure. Together with a structural analysis of recent cryo-EM spliceosome structures at different stages of the splicing cycle, we determined that the footprint of the Bact complex on precursor mRNA is best able to predict splicing outcomes for exon 10 inclusion of the alternatively spliced MAPT gene. However, structure alone only achieves 74% accuracy. We therefore developed a β-regression weighting framework that incorporates splice site strength, structure and exonic/intronic splicing regulatory elements which together achieves 90% accuracy for 47 known and six newly discovered splice-altering variants. This combined experimental/computational framework represents a path forward for accurate prediction of splicing related disease-causing variants.

scholarly journals Systematic characterization of short intronic splicing-regulatory elements

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan Gao ◽  
Kuan-Ting Lin ◽  
Yang Yang ◽  
Jialin Bai ◽  
Li Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Splice Site ◽  
Enrichment Analysis ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Hek293 Cells ◽  
Splice Site Selection ◽  
Aberrant Splicing ◽  
Rna Sequences ◽  
Splicing Regulatory Elements ◽  
Alternatively Spliced

Intronic splicing enhancers and silencers (ISEs and ISSs) are two groups of splicing-regulatory elements (SREs) that play critical roles in determining splice-site selection, particularly for alternatively spliced introns or exons. SREs are often short motifs; their mutation or dysregulation of their cognate proteins frequently causes aberrant splicing and results in disease. To date, however, knowledge about SRE sequences and how they regulate splicing remains limited. Here, using an SMN2 minigene, we generated a complete pentamer-sequence library that comprises all possible combinations of 5 nucleotides in intron 7, at a fixed site downstream of the 5′ splice site. We systematically analyzed the effects of all 1023 mutant pentamers on exon 7 splicing, in comparison to the wild-type minigene, in HEK293 cells. Our data show that the majority of pentamers significantly affect exon 7 splicing: 584 of them are stimulatory and 230 are inhibitory. To identify actual SREs, we utilized a motif set enrichment analysis (MSEA), from which we identified groups of stimulatory and inhibitory SRE motifs. We experimentally validated several strong SREs in SMN1/2 and MAPT minigene settings. Our results provide a valuable resource for understanding how short RNA sequences regulate splicing. Many novel SREs can be explored further to elucidate their mechanism of action.

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