scholarly journals Posttranscriptional Suppression of Interleukin-6 Production by Human Cytomegalovirus

2005 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 472-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Gealy ◽  
Marian Denson ◽  
Christine Humphreys ◽  
Brian McSharry ◽  
Gavin Wilkinson ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has evolved multiple strategies for suppression of the antiviral response of the infected cell. DNA array technology has revealed that HCMV clearly regulates host gene expression during the course of a productive infection by enhancing, sustaining, or suppressing steady-state levels of cellular transcripts. Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a pleiotropic cytokine that plays a central role in the immune response to infection. Here we report a detailed study of the effects of HCMV infection on IL-6 expression by human fibroblasts. UV-inactivated virus was found to induce high levels of IL-6 mRNA and protein expression, and IL-6 mRNA remained abundant in cells 16 h after inoculation even though the level of ongoing IL-6 transcription was not significantly enhanced. In lytic HCMV infections, the onset of viral gene expression resulted in two apparently antagonistic effects on IL-6 expression: (i) transcriptional activation, mediated at least in part by the IE2p86 protein, and (ii) posttranscriptional suppression mediated by destabilization of IL-6 mRNA. Transcriptional activation was outweighed by the suppressive effect, such that cells undergoing productive infection produced less IL-6 than cells challenged with inactivated virus. Suppression of IL-6 expression was independent of the viral IL-10 homologue, cmvIL-10. Destabilization of IL-6 mRNA was observed to coincide with the enhanced expression and aberrant intracellular localization of HuR, an mRNA-binding protein known to interact with IL-6 and other mRNAs containing 3′ AU-rich elements. Our data suggest a novel mechanism for gene regulation by HCMV at the posttranscriptional level.

1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (11) ◽  
pp. 9274-9283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lüder Wiebusch ◽  
Christian Hagemeier

ABSTRACT The 86-kDa IE2 protein of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is an important regulator of viral and host cell gene expression. Still, besides its function as a transcription factor, little is known about the biological activities of IE2. Here, we show that IE2 can induce a G1 arrest in several different cell lines, including HCMV-permissive U-373 cells. The known transcriptional activation domains of IE2 are dispensable for G1 arrest, favoring a posttranscriptional mechanism mediating this cell cycle effect. We show that like human primary fibroblasts U-373 cells arrest in G1 upon infection with HCMV. This G1 arrest occurs within 24 h after infection and in proliferating cells depends on viral gene expression. Our data therefore suggest that IE2 is at least partially responsible for blocking the transition from G1 to S phase, which is induced when cells are infected with HCMV.


2012 ◽  
Vol 93 (5) ◽  
pp. 1046-1058 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. Towler ◽  
Bahram Ebrahimi ◽  
Brian Lane ◽  
Andrew J. Davison ◽  
Derrick J. Dargan

Broad cell tropism contributes to the pathogenesis of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), but the extent to which cell type influences HCMV gene expression is unclear. A bespoke HCMV DNA microarray was used to monitor the transcriptome activity of the low passage Merlin strain of HCMV at 12, 24, 48 and 72 h post-infection, during a single round of replication in human fetal foreskin fibroblast cells (HFFF-2s), human retinal pigmented epithelial cells (RPE-1s) and human astrocytoma cells (U373MGs). In order to correlate transcriptome activity with concurrent biological responses, viral cytopathic effect, growth kinetics and genomic loads were examined in the three cell types. The temporal expression pattern of viral genes was broadly similar in HFFF-2s and RPE-1s, but dramatically different in U373MGs. Of the 165 known HCMV protein-coding genes, 41 and 48 were differentially regulated in RPE-1s and U373MGs, respectively, compared with HFFF-2s, and 22 of these were differentially regulated in both RPE-1s and U373MGs. In RPE-1s, all differentially regulated genes were downregulated, but, in U373MGs, some were down- and others upregulated. Differentially regulated genes were identified among the immediate-early, early, early late and true-late viral gene classes. Grouping of downregulated genes according to function at landmark stages of the replication cycle led to the identification of potential bottleneck stages (genome replication, virion assembly, and virion maturation and release) that may account for cell type-dependent viral growth kinetics. The possibility that cell type-specific differences in expressed cellular factors are responsible for modulation of viral gene expression is discussed.


2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bibiana Costa ◽  
Jennifer Becker ◽  
Tobias Krammer ◽  
Felix Mulenge ◽  
Verónica Durán ◽  
...  

Abstract Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widespread obligatory human pathogen causing life-threatening disease in immunocompromised hosts. Myeloid cells such as monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) are targets of HCMV. Here, we performed single-cell RNA sequencing, which revealed infection of most moDCs upon in vitro HCMV exposure, whereas only a fraction of them initiated viral gene expression. We identified three moDC subsets, of which CD1a−/CD86− cells showed the highest susceptibility. Upon HCMV entry, STING activation not only induced IFN-β, but also promoted viral gene expression. Upon progression of infection, IFN-β but not IFN-λ1 expression was inhibited. Similarly, ISG expression was initially induced and then shut off and thus allowed productive infection. Increased viral gene expression was associated with the induction of several pro- (RHOB, HSP1A1, DNAJB1) and anti-viral (RNF213, TNFSF10, IFI16) genes. Thus, moDC permissiveness to HCMV depends on complex interactions between virus sensing, regulation of IFNs/ISGs and viral gene expression.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luna Li ◽  
Satinder Dahiya ◽  
Sandhya Kortagere ◽  
Benjamas Aiamkitsumrit ◽  
David Cunningham ◽  
...  

The human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) promoter or long-terminal repeat (LTR) regulates viral gene expression by interacting with multiple viral and host factors. The viral transactivator protein Tat plays an important role in transcriptional activation of HIV-1 gene expression. Functional domains of Tat and its interaction with transactivation response element RNA and cellular transcription factors have been examined. Genetic variation withintatof different HIV-1 subtypes has been shown to affect the interaction of the viral transactivator with cellular and/or viral proteins, influencing the overall level of transcriptional activation as well as its action as a neurotoxic protein. Consequently, the genetic variability withintatmay impact the molecular architecture of functional domains of the Tat protein that may impact HIV pathogenesis and disease. Tat as a therapeutic target for anti-HIV drugs has also been discussed.


2009 ◽  
Vol 90 (10) ◽  
pp. 2364-2374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian J. Groves ◽  
Matthew B. Reeves ◽  
John H. Sinclair

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) lytic gene expression occurs in a regulated cascade, initiated by expression of the viral major immediate-early (IE) proteins. Transcribed from the major IE promoter (MIEP), the major IE genes regulate viral early and late gene expression. This study found that a substantial proportion of infecting viral genomes became associated with histones immediately upon infection of permissive fibroblasts at low m.o.i. and these histones bore markers of repressed chromatin. As infection progressed, however, the viral MIEP became associated with histone marks, which correlate with the known transcriptional activity of the MIEP at IE time points. Interestingly, this chromatin-mediated repression of the MIEP at ‘pre-IE’ times of infection could be overcome by inhibition of histone deacetylases, as well as by infection at high m.o.i., and resulted in a temporal advance of the infection cycle by inducing premature viral early and late gene expression and DNA replication. As well as the MIEP, and consistent with previous observations, the viral early and late promoters were also initially associated with repressive chromatin. However, changes in histone modifications around these promoters also occurred as infection progressed, and this correlated with the known temporal regulation of the viral early and late gene expression cascade. These data argue that the chromatin structure of all classes of viral genes are initially repressed on infection of permissive cells and that the chromatin structure of HCMV gene promoters plays an important role in regulating the time course of viral gene expression during lytic infection.


2011 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 307-317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria-Cristina Arcangeletti ◽  
Isabella Rodighiero ◽  
Prisco Mirandola ◽  
Flora De Conto ◽  
Silvia Covan ◽  
...  

2014 ◽  
Vol 89 (2) ◽  
pp. 1070-1082 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ya-Ru Fu ◽  
Xi-Juan Liu ◽  
Xiao-Jun Li ◽  
Zhang-zhou Shen ◽  
Bo Yang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTCongenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection is a leading cause of birth defects, primarily manifesting as neurological disorders. HCMV infection alters expression of cellular microRNAs (miRs) and induces cell cycle arrest, which in turn modifies the cellular environment to favor virus replication. Previous observations found that HCMV infection reduces miR-21 expression in neural progenitor/stem cells (NPCs). Here, we show that infection of NPCs and U-251MG cells represses miR-21 while increasing the levels of Cdc25a, a cell cycle regulator and known target of miR-21. These opposing responses to infection prompted an investigation of the relationship between miR-21, Cdc25a, and viral replication. Overexpression of miR-21 in NPCs and U-251MG cells inhibited viral gene expression, genome replication, and production of infectious progeny, while shRNA-knockdown of miR-21 in U-251MG cells increased viral gene expression. In contrast, overexpression of Cdc25a in U-251MG cells increased viral gene expression and production of infectious progeny and overcame the inhibitory effects of miR-21 overexpression. Three viral gene products—IE1, pp71, and UL26—were shown to inhibit miR-21 expression at the transcriptional level. These results suggest that Cdc25a promotes HCMV replication and elevation of Cdc25a levels after HCMV infection are due in part to HCMV-mediated repression of miR-21. Thus, miR-21 is an intrinsic antiviral factor that is modulated by HCMV infection. This suggests a role for miR-21 downregulation in the neuropathogenesis of HCMV infection of the developing CNS.IMPORTANCEHuman cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a ubiquitous pathogen and has very high prevalence among population, especially in China, and congenital HCMV infection is a major cause for birth defects. Elucidating virus-host interactions that govern HCMV replication in neuronal cells is critical to understanding the neuropathogenesis of birth defects resulting from congenital infection. In this study, we confirm that HCMV infection downregulates miR-21 but upregulates Cdc25a. Further determined the negative effects of cellular miRNA miR-21 on HCMV replication in neural progenitor/stem cells and U-251MG glioblastoma/astrocytoma cells. More importantly, our results provide the first evidence that miR-21 negatively regulates HCMV replication by targeting Cdc25a, a vital cell cycle regulator. We further found that viral gene products of IE1, pp71, and UL26 play roles in inhibiting miR-21 expression, which in turn causes increases in Cdc25a and benefits HCMV replication. Thus, miR-21 appears to be an intrinsic antiviral factor that represents a potential target for therapeutic intervention.


1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (7) ◽  
pp. 5757-5766 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Chambers ◽  
Ana Angulo ◽  
Dhammika Amaratunga ◽  
Hongqing Guo ◽  
Ying Jiang ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT We describe, for the first time, the generation of a viral DNA chip for simultaneous expression measurements of nearly all known open reading frames (ORFs) in the largest member of the herpesvirus family, human cytomegalovirus (HCMV). In this study, an HCMV chip was fabricated and used to characterize the temporal class of viral gene expression. The viral chip is composed of microarrays of viral DNA prepared by robotic deposition of oligonucleotides on glass for ORFs in the HCMV genome. Viral gene expression was monitored by hybridization to the oligonucleotide microarrays with fluorescently labelled cDNAs prepared from mock-infected or infected human foreskin fibroblast cells. By using cycloheximide and ganciclovir to block de novo viral protein synthesis and viral DNA replication, respectively, the kinetic classes of array elements were classified. The expression profiles of known ORFs and many previously uncharacterized ORFs provided a temporal map of immediate-early (α), early (β), early-late (γ1), and late (γ2) genes in the entire genome of HCMV. Sequence compositional analysis of the 5′ noncoding DNA sequences of the temporal classes, performed by using algorithms that automatically search for defined and recurring motifs in unaligned sequences, indicated the presence of potential regulatory motifs for β, γ1, and γ2 genes. In summary, these fabricated microarrays of viral DNA allow rapid and parallel analysis of gene expression at the whole viral genome level. The viral chip approach coupled with global biochemical and genetic strategies should greatly speed the functional analysis of established as well as newly discovered large viral genomes.


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