scholarly journals Zinc Finger Domain of Murine Leukemia Virus Nucleocapsid Protein Enhances the Rate of Viral DNA Synthesis in Vivo

2002 ◽  
Vol 76 (15) ◽  
pp. 7473-7484 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wen-hui Zhang ◽  
Carey K. Hwang ◽  
Wei-Shau Hu ◽  
Robert J. Gorelick ◽  
Vinay K. Pathak
Keyword(s):  
Secondary Structure ◽  
Dna Synthesis ◽  
Zinc Finger ◽  
Rna Secondary Structure ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Template Switching ◽  
Zinc Finger Domain ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT In vitro studies have indicated that retroviral nucleocapsid (NC) protein facilitates both DNA synthesis by reverse transcriptase (RT) and annealing of the nascent DNA with acceptor template. Increasing the rate of DNA synthesis is expected to reduce the frequency of RT template switching, whereas annealing the nascent DNA with acceptor template promotes template switching. We performed a mutational analysis of the murine leukemia virus (MLV) NC zinc finger domain to study its effect on RT template switching in vivo and to explore the role of NC during reverse transcription. The effects of NC mutations on RT template switching were determined by using a previously described in vivo direct-repeat deletion assay. A trans-complementation assay was also developed in which replication-defective NC mutants were rescued by coexpression of replication-defective RT mutants that provided wild-type NC in trans. We found that mutations in the MLV NC zinc finger domain increased the frequency of template switching approximately twofold. When a predicted stem-loop RNA secondary structure was introduced into the template RNA, the template-switching frequency increased 5-fold for wild-type NC and further increased up to an additional 6-fold for NC zinc finger domain mutants, resulting in an overall increase of as much as 30-fold. Thus, wild-type NC increased the efficiency with which RT was able to reverse transcribe through regions of RNA secondary structure that might serve as RT pause sites. These results provide the first in vivo evidence that NC enhances the rate of DNA synthesis by RT in regions of the template possessing stable RNA secondary structure.

scholarly journals Development of an In Vivo Assay To Identify Structural Determinants in Murine Leukemia Virus Reverse Transcriptase Important for Fidelity

2000 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 312-319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elias K. Halvas ◽  
Evguenia S. Svarovskaia ◽  
Vinay K. Pathak
Keyword(s):  
Dna Synthesis ◽  
Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Gene Transfection ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Rnase H ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Structural Determinants ◽  
In Vivo Assay ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT Error-prone DNA synthesis by retroviral reverse transcriptases (RTs) is a major contributor to variation in retroviral populations. Structural features of retroviral RTs that are important for accuracy of DNA synthesis in vivo are not known. To identify structural elements of murine leukemia virus (MLV) RT important for fidelity in vivo, we developed a D17-based encapsidating cell line (ANGIE P) which is designed to express the amphotropic MLV envelope. ANGIE P also contains an MLV-based retroviral vector (GA-1) which encodes a wild-type bacterial β-galactosidase gene (lacZ) and a neomycin phosphotransferase gene. Transfection of ANGIE P cells with wild-type or mutated MLV gag-pol expression constructs generated GA-1 virus that was able to undergo only one cycle of viral replication upon infection of D17 cells. The infected D17 cell clones were characterized by staining with 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-β-d-galactopyranoside (X-Gal), and the frequencies of inactivating mutations in lacZ were quantified. Three mutations in the YVDD motif (V223M, V223S, and V223A) and two mutations in the RNase H domain (S526A and R657S) exhibited frequencies of lacZ inactivation 1.2- to 2.3-fold higher than that for the wild-type MLV RT (P < 0.005). Two mutations (V223I and Y598V) did not affect the frequency oflacZ inactivation. These results establish a sensitive in vivo assay for identification of structural determinants important for accuracy of DNA synthesis and indicate that several structural determinants may have an effect on the in vivo fidelity of MLV RT.

scholarly journals Decreased Virus Population Diversity in p53-Null Mice Infected with Weakly Oncogenic Abelson Virus

2005 ◽  
Vol 79 (18) ◽  
pp. 11618-11626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica Marchlik ◽  
Richard Kalman ◽  
Naomi Rosenberg
Keyword(s):  
Tumor Suppressor ◽  
Recombination Event ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Population Diversity ◽  
Virus Population ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Emerging Viruses ◽  
Host Genes ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT The Abelson murine leukemia virus (Ab-MLV), like other retroviruses that contain v-onc genes, arose following a recombination event between a replicating retrovirus and a cellular oncogene. Although experimentally validated models have been presented to address the mechanism by which oncogene capture occurs, very little is known about the events that influence emerging viruses following the recombination event that incorporates the cellular sequences. One feature that may play a role is the genetic makeup of the host in which the virus arises; a number of host genes, including oncogenes and tumor suppressor genes, have been shown to affect the pathogenesis of many murine leukemia viruses. To examine how a host gene might affect an emerging v-onc gene-containing retrovirus, we studied the weakly oncogenic Ab-MLV-P90A strain, a mutant that generates highly oncogenic variants in vivo, and compared the viral populations in normal mice and mice lacking the p53 tumor suppressor gene. While variants arose in both p53 +/+ and p53 − / − tumors, the samples from the wild-type animals contained a more diverse virus population. Differences in virus population diversity were not observed when wild-type and null animals were infected with a highly oncogenic wild-type strain of Ab-MLV. These results indicate that p53, and presumably other host genes, affects the selective forces that operate on virus populations in vivo and likely influences the evolution of oncogenic retroviruses such as Ab-MLV.

scholarly journals Structure-Based Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus Reverse Transcriptase Mutants with Altered Intracellular Direct-Repeat Deletion Frequencies

2000 ◽  
Vol 74 (20) ◽  
pp. 9629-9636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie K. Pfeiffer ◽  
Millie M. Georgiadis ◽  
Alice Telesnitsky
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Transcriptase ◽  
Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Direct Repeat ◽  
Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Wild Type Virus ◽  
Template Switching ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Catalytic Core ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT Template switching rates of Moloney murine leukemia virus reverse transcriptase mutants were tested using a retroviral vector-based direct-repeat deletion assay. The reverse transcriptase mutants contained alterations in residues that modeling of substrates into the catalytic core had suggested might affect interactions with primer and/or template strands. As assessed by the frequency of functionallacZ gene generation from vectors in which lacZwas disrupted by insertion of a sequence duplication, the frequency of template switching varied more than threefold among fully replication-competent mutants. Some mutants displayed deletion rates that were lower and others displayed rates that were higher than that of wild-type virus. Replication for the mutants with the most significant alterations in template switching frequencies was similar to that of the wild type. These data suggest that reverse transcriptase template switching rates can be altered significantly without destroying normal replication functions.

scholarly journals Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus Integrase Protein Augments Viral DNA Synthesis in Infected Cells

2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (23) ◽  
pp. 11365-11372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lilin Lai ◽  
Hongmei Liu ◽  
Xiaoyun Wu ◽  
John C. Kappes
Keyword(s):  
Dna Synthesis ◽  
Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Specific Interaction ◽  
Proteolytic Processing ◽  
Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Viral Dna ◽  
Infected Cells ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT Mutations in the IN domain of retroviral DNA may affect multiple steps of the virus life cycle, suggesting that the IN protein may have other functions in addition to its integration function. We previously reported that the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 IN protein is required for efficient viral DNA synthesis and that this function requires specific interaction with other viral components but not enzyme (integration) activity. In this report, we characterized the structure and function of the Moloney murine leukemia virus (MLV) IN protein in viral DNA synthesis. Using an MLV vector containing green fluorescent protein as a sensitive reporter for virus infection, we found that mutations in either the catalytic triad (D184A) or the HHCC motif (H61A) reduced infectivity by approximately 1,000-fold. Mutations that deleted the entire IN (ΔIN) or 34 C-terminal amino acid residues (Δ34) were more severely defective, with infectivity levels consistently reduced by 10,000-fold. Immunoblot analysis indicated that these mutants were similar to wild-type MLV with respect to virion production and proteolytic processing of the Gag and Pol precursor proteins. Using semiquantitative PCR to analyze viral cDNA synthesis in infected cells, we found the Δ34 and ΔIN mutants to be markedly impaired while the D184A and H61A mutants synthesized cDNA at levels similar to the wild type. The DNA synthesis defect was rescued by complementing the Δ34 and ΔIN mutants intrans with either wild-type IN or the D184A mutant IN, provided as a Gag-IN fusion protein. However, the DNA synthesis defect of ΔIN mutant virions could not be complemented with the Δ34 IN mutant. Taken together, these analyses strongly suggested that the MLV IN protein itself is required for efficient viral DNA synthesis and that this function may be conserved among other retroviruses.

scholarly journals Replication Defect of Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus with a Mutant Reverse Transcriptase That Can Incorporate Ribonucleotides and Deoxyribonucleotides

1998 ◽  
Vol 72 (7) ◽  
pp. 5905-5911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guangxia Gao ◽  
Stephen P. Goff
Keyword(s):  
Reverse Transcriptase ◽  
Dna Synthesis ◽  
Virus Replication ◽  
Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Moloney Murine Leukemia Virus ◽  
Minus Strand ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT Reverse transcriptase (RT) plays a critical role in retrovirus replication, directing the synthesis of a double- stranded DNA copy of the viral RNA genome. We have previously described a mutant RT of the Moloney murine leukemia virus in which F155 was replaced by valine, and we demonstrated that this substitution allowed the enzyme to incorporate ribonucleotides to form RNA while still retaining its normal ability to incorporate deoxyribonucleotides to form DNA. When introduced into the viral genome, this mutation rendered the virus incapable of replication. Characterization of the mutant virus revealed that the enzyme was still active and able to synthesize minus-strand strong stop DNA and some longer products but failed to make full-length minus-strand DNA. We propose that the failure of the enzyme to complete DNA synthesis in vivo resulted from its ability to incorporate ribonucleotides into the products, which served as inhibitors for DNA synthesis. We also tested seven other amino acid residues for their abilities to substitute for F155 in virus replication; of these, only tyrosine could support virus replication. In an attempt to select for second-site suppressor mutations, the F155V mutant was subjected to random mutagenesis and was used as a parent for the isolation of revertant viruses. Two independent revertants were found to have changed the valine residue at position 155 back to the wild- type phenylalanine. These results suggest that an aromatic ring at this position is important for virus replication.

scholarly journals Mutation in the Glycosylated Gag Protein of Murine Leukemia Virus Results in Reduced In Vivo Infectivity and a Novel Defect in Viral Budding or Release

2007 ◽  
Vol 81 (8) ◽  
pp. 3685-3692 ◽  
Author(s):  
Audrey Low ◽  
Shoibal Datta ◽  
Yurii Kuznetsov ◽  
Sohail Jahid ◽  
Nayantara Kothari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Leukemia Virus ◽  
Spherical Particles ◽  
Wild Type Virus ◽  
Type Virus ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Viral Budding ◽  
Leukemia Viruses ◽  
Murine Leukemia

ABSTRACT All gammaretroviruses, including murine leukemia viruses (MuLVs), feline leukemia viruses, and gibbon-ape leukemia virus, encode an alternate, glycosylated form of Gag polyprotein (glyco-Gag or gPr80 gag ) in addition to the polyprotein precursor of the viral capsid proteins (Pr65 gag ). gPr80 gag is translated from an upstream in-frame CUG initiation codon, in contrast to the AUG codon used for Pr65 gag . The role of glyco-Gag in MuLV replication has been unclear, since gPr80 gag -negative Moloney MuLV (M-MuLV) mutants are replication competent in vitro and pathogenic in vivo. However, reversion to the wild type is frequently observed in vivo. In these experiments, in vivo inoculation of a gPr80 gag mutant, Ab-X-M-MuLV, showed substantially lower (2 log) initial infectivity in newborn NIH Swiss mice than that of wild-type virus, and revertants to the wild type could be detected by PCR cloning and DNA sequencing as early as 15 days postinfection. Atomic force microscopy of Ab-X-M-MuLV-infected producer cells or of the PA317 amphotropic MuLV-based vector packaging line (also gPr80 gag negative) revealed the presence of tube-like viral structures on the cell surface. In contrast, wild-type virus-infected cells showed the typical spherical, 145-nm particles observed previously. Expression of gPr80 gag in PA317 cells converted the tube-like structures to typical spherical particles. PA317 cells expressing gPr80 gag produced 5- to 10-fold more infectious vector or viral particles as well. Metabolic labeling studies indicated that this reflected enhanced virus particle release rather than increased viral protein synthesis. These results indicate that gPr80 gag is important for M-MuLV replication in vivo and in vitro and that the protein may be involved in a late step in viral budding or release.

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