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Biomedical subjects

K Shimotohno

Publications and source records attributed to K Shimotohno.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Novel hepatitis C virus protease inhibitors: thiazolidine derivatives.

This study evaluated the inhibitory effects of thiazolidine derivatives on hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease and other human serine proteases. The inhibition efficacy was tested with a reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) assay system using a NS3-NS4A fusion protein as the HCV protease and a synthetic peptide substrate that mimics the NS5A-5B junction. Nine thiazolidine derivatives showed more than 50% inhibition at 50 microg/ml. The most potent derivative was RD4-6250, with 50% inhibition at a concentration of 2.3 microg/ml; this concentration was lower than those of other protease inhibitors reported previously. The most selective derivative was RD4-6205, with 50% inhibition at a concentration of 6.4 microg/ml, a lower concentration than those on other serine proteases (chymotrypsin, trypsin, plasmin, and elastase). These results suggest that the RD4-6205 skeleton is an important structure for inhibitory activity on the HCV protease NS3-NS4A.

Enzyme Inhibitors↗
PubMed1997

Selection of RNA aptamers that bind specifically to the NS3 protease of hepatitis C virus.

The RNA genome of human hepatitis C virus (HCV) is translated into a large precursor polyprotein. The NS3 protease of HCV has a crucial role in the processing of the polyprotein into functional viral proteins. We have used an in vitro genetic-selection strategy to isolate high-affinity RNA aptamers that bind to the NS3 protein, especially to its protease domain. Starting from a RNA pool that had a random sequence core of 12-18 nucleotides, aptamers that bind specifically to the NS3 protein were selected after 10 rounds of selection and amplification. A single aptamer, 10G-1, was found predominantly (71%) in the selected pool. This aptamer could bind to the NS3 protein with a binding constant of 650 nM and inhibit the proteolytic activity in vitro. By phosphate-modification-interference analysis we showed that the phosphate residues that are critical for the binding of 10G-1 to NS3 lie within the selected regions of the aptamer and that binding involves electrostatic contacts with the phosphates of regions G28-U34 and A47-A55. The NS3-binding region in 10G-1 can serve as a basis for designing more potential inhibitors of the NS3 protein.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Hepatitis G virus replication in human cultured cells displaying susceptibility to hepatitis C virus infection.

We recently developed a hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication system using two cultured human cell lines: MT-2C, a human T-cell leukemia virus type I-infected cloned T cell line, and PH5CH, a non-neoplastic human hepatocyte line. In the course of the study, we found evidence that replication of hepatitis G virus (HGV), which has recently been identified, was supported in both MT-2C and PH5CH cells. When these cells were inoculated with serum 1B-3 containing both HCV and HGV obtained from a blood donor, the 5'-noncoding (5'-NC) regions of HCV RNA and HGV RNA were detected by RT-nested PCR in both cell lines more than 30 days postinoculation, and the 3'-noncoding region of HGV RNA was also detected in the both cell lines more than 30 days postinoculation. Sequence analysis of the 5'-NC region of HGV RNA revealed the quasispecies nature of HGV, although the 5'-NC region was highly conserved among HGV isolates. This HGV-infected culture system will be useful for various biological and virological studies of HGV.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1997

An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for detecting proteolytic activity of hepatitis C virus proteinase.

An ELISA method for the quantitation in vitro of HCV serine proteinase activity was developed. A peptide substrate, Ac-Gly-Glu-Ala-Gly-Asp-Asp-Ile-Val-Pro-Cys-Ser-Met-Ser-Tyr-Thr-Trp-Thr-L ys (biotin) -OH (Sub-1), was hydrolyzed by a recombinant NS3 proteinase fused with maltose binding protein (MBP-NS3) into a product with a free amino moiety at the N-terminus. The product was immobilized, and the amino moiety was analyzed by digoxigenin labeling followed by immunological reaction with anti-digoxigenin-alkaline phosphatase conjugate and then the colorimeteric reaction. This method is suited for the high throughput screening of inhibitors, and the screening can be accelerated by automatic operation.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Characterization of peripheral blood T-lymphocytes transduced with HTLV-I Tax mutants with different trans-activating phenotypes.

Tax1, a transcriptional trans-activator of the Human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I), induces the expression of many cellular genes through interaction with at least three distinct cellular transcription factors; CREB/ATF, NF-kappaB, and SRF. This Tax1-induced activation of cellular genes is considered to be a critical event in T-cell transformation by HTLV-I. To elucidate the role of each Tax1-inducible transcriptional pathway in T-cell transformation, we introduced Tax1 mutants with different trans-activating phenotypes into peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) by retroviral vectors. Analysis of these PBLs revealed that activation of the NF-kappaB pathway is sufficient to promote the growth response to IL-2. However, for the clonal expansion of CD4+ T-cells, which is a characteristic result of HTLV-I infection, activation of the CREB/ATF and SRF pathways is also required.

CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes↗
PubMed1997

Aberrant expression and function of p53 in T-cells immortalized by HTLV-I Tax1.

The expression and function of p53 tumor suppressor protein was investigated in T-cells immortalized by the Tax1 protein of HTLV-I. Conformationally wild-type p53 was expressed at elevated levels in Tax1-immortalized T-cells by post-transcriptional mechanisms when compared with normal T-cells. Luciferase assays with a reporter plasmid containing p53-binding sites revealed an impairment in the transactivating function of p53 in Tax1-immortalized T-cells. Our results suggest an important role for Tax1 in the aberrant expression and function of p53 observed in many HTLV-I transformed cells.

CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes↗
PubMed1997

Expression of highly active recombinant NS3 protease domain of hepatitis C virus in E. coli.

The serine protease domain of HCV comprising amino acids 1027-1218 (deltaNS3) was expressed in E. coli with a His tag at its N-terminal end. The protease was purified to apparent homogeneity by a single step affinity chromatography resulting in high yields (approximately 3 mg/l of cultured cells). The deltaNS3 efficiently cleaves a 17-mer peptide corresponding to the NS5A-NS5B junction with kcat/Km = 160 x 10(-3) min(-1) microM(-1) in the presence of NS4A peptide. Our deltaNS3 represents the minimal domain possessing highly active protease of NS3 constructed so far. The deltaNS3 protein also efficiently processed a longer substrate corresponding to NS5A/5B junction (2203-2506 amino acids) that was synthesized by in vitro transcription and translation system.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Analysis of the cell tropism of HCV by using in vitro HCV-infected human lymphocytes and hepatocytes.

BACKGROUND/METHODS: We recently established two hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication systems, using MT-2, a human T-cell leukemia virus type I-infected human T-cell line, and PH5CH, a non-neoplastic human hepatocyte line immortalized with simian virus 40 large T antigen. These HCV replication systems were used to assess the infective potencies of seven sera containing more than 10(6) HCV genomes per ml obtained from HCV-positive blood donors. RESULTS: The results showed that these sera had different infectivities for MT-2 and PH5CH cells. One of the seven sera, 1B-1, was more infective for MT-2 cells than PH5CH cells, whereas all the sera except serum 1B-1 were more infective for PH5CH cells than for MT-2 cells. Intracellular HCV RNA could be detected at least 30 days after inoculation with three of the sera. These findings suggested that the infective potency of each serum depends on the type of target cells. To further investigate HCV replication in these cells, we examined the hypervariable region 1 (HVR1) populations of HCV recovered from both MT-2 and PH5CH cells at 8 days postinoculation. The results revealed that the shift to limited HVR1 populations from the quasi-species of HVR1 populations in both cells usually occurred within 8 days after virus inoculation. Furthermore, in two of four sera, the predominant HVR1 populations in MT-2 and PH5CH cells appeared to be different. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that HCV exhibits cell tropism.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Cleavage activity of hepatitis C virus serine proteinase.

To study the character of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) encoding serine proteinase and to search for inhibitors, a practical in vitro assay system using the purified enzyme and synthetic peptide substrates was established. The enzyme used was expressed in Escherichia coli as a fusion form with protein tags and purified to apparent homogeneity by single-step affinity chromatography. The purified enzyme exhibited proteolytic activity with pH optima of around eight, and the addition of NS4A fragments increased the activity as well as the thermal stability of the enzyme. The activity was inhibited by EDTA and some divalent ions, i.e., copper and zinc, though calcium, magnesium, and manganese were stimulative both in the presence and absence of the NS4A fragment. None of the common protease inhibitors, including serine protease inhibitors, effectively inhibited the activity. Based on the kinetic parameters of the cleavage reaction of the synthetic 20 mer peptides corresponding to the three cleavage sites, NS4A/4B, NS4B/5A, and NS5A/5B, the peptide with the NS5A/5B junction was found to be the most efficient substrate. Analysis of the minimal peptide substrate of NS5A/5B indicated that 5 to 7 amino acids on both sides of the junction were required for efficient cleavage. These findings are expected to contribute to the search for a proteinase inhibitor.

Cations, Divalent↗
PubMed1997

Genetic analysis of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome from HCV-infected human T cells.

We recently established a cell culture system for the replication of hepatitis C virus (HCV) by using a human T cell leukaemia virus type I-infected cell line, MT-2, and showed that the quasi-species of the hypervariable region 1 observed in the original inoculum became homogeneous in MT-2 cells 10 days after inoculation of HCV. In this study, we obtained HCV cDNA clones covering the whole viral genome by RT-nested PCR using RNA from HCV-infected cloned MT-2C cells, which support viral replication more efficiently, at 12 days after inoculation. A total of 41 distinct HCV cDNA clones covering almost the whole viral genome were also isolated from a cDNA library derived from the original inoculum. Molecular evolutional analyses comparing the sequences of the HCV clones obtained from both sources revealed that the HCV populations became homogeneous in more than half of the compared regions. This finding suggests that limited HCV populations are able to replicate in MT-2C cells. In addition, we isolated cDNA clones containing a 3' X-tail sequence, which was recently identified as a bona fide 3' terminus of the HCV genome, in the HCV-infected MT-2C cells and confirmed that the nucleotide sequence of the 3' X-tail was highly conserved, suggesting its implication in HCV replication. Finally, on the basis of the sequences of HCV cDNA clones obtained from HCV-infected MT-2C cells, we determined the entire nucleotide sequence of the HCV genome containing the 3' X-tail as a candidate for an infectious HCV molecular clone.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Hepatitis C virus in pelvic lymph nodes and female reproductive organs.

Based on epidemiological evidence, hepatitis C virus (HCV) is thought to be involved in the etiology of not only hepatocellular carcinoma, but also lymphoproliferative diseases. In addition, our previous studies using recently developed cell culture systems that support HCV replication have indicated that HCV possesses both hepatotropism and lymphotropism. To determine whether HCV is present in extrahepatic organs, we conducted semi-quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction for the 5' non-coding region of the HCV genome in surgical specimens (lymph nodes, ovary, uterus, peripheral blood mononuclear cells [PBMCs] and serum) from three patients with gynecological cancer. We found relatively high HCV genome titers in the lymph nodes, not in the sera, irrespective of various titers in PBMCs. These results suggest that lymph nodes may play an important role in the carrier state and the persistence of HCV infection. Moreover, contrary to expectation, high titers of the HCV genome were observed in the ovaries and the uteri, suggesting the feasibility of mother-to-infant and spouse-to-spouse transmissions of HCV.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

The N-terminal region of hepatitis C virus-encoded NS5A is important for NS4A-dependent phosphorylation.

We previously showed that two proteins, a 56-kDa protein (p56) and a 58-kDa protein (p58), are produced from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) nonstructural 5A region (NS5A) and that the production of p58 is enhanced by the presence of NS4A (T. Kaneko, Y. Tanji, S. Satoh, M. Hijikata, S. Asabe, K. Kimura, and K. Shimotohno, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 205:320-326, 1994). Both proteins have phosphorylated serine residues, some of which are located in the C-terminal region. In p58, phosphorylation of serine residues in the central region of HCV NS5A is important for production of p58 in an NS4A-dependent manner. To clarify the mechanism of NS5A phosphorylation, in particular phosphorylation in the central region, phosphorylation of deleted and mutated forms of NS5A was analyzed using a transient protein production system in cultured cells in the presence or absence of NS4A. Association of the NS5A region from amino acids 2135 to 2139 with NS4A was important for NS4A-dependent phosphorylation of NS5A.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Specific interaction of polypyrimidine tract-binding protein with the extreme 3'-terminal structure of the hepatitis C virus genome, the 3'X.

We previously identified a highly conserved 98-nucleotide (nt) sequence, the 3'X, as the extreme 3'-terminal structure of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome (T. Tanaka, N. Kato, M.-J. Cho, and K. Shimotohno, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 215:744-749, 1995). Since the 3' end of positive-strand viral RNA is the initiation site of RNA replication, the 3'X should contribute to HCV negative-strand RNA synthesis. Cellular factors may also be involved in this replication mechanism, since several cellular proteins have been shown to interact with the 3'-end regions of other viral genomes. In this study, we found that both 38- and 57-kDa proteins in the human hepatocyte line PH5CH bound specifically to the 3'-end structure of HCV positive-strand RNA by a UV-induced cross-linking assay. The 57-kDa protein (p57), which had higher affinities to RNA probes, recognized a 26-nt sequence including the 5'-terminal 19 nt of the 3'X and 7 flanking nt, designated the transitional region. This sequence contains pyrimidine-rich motifs and shows similarity to the consensus binding sequence of the polypyrimidine tract-binding protein (PTB), which has been implicated in alternative pre-mRNA splicing and cap-independent translation. We found that this 3'X-binding p57 is identical to PTB. The 3'X-binding p57 was immunoprecipitated by anti-PTB antibody, and recombinant PTB bound to the 3'X RNA. In addition, p57 bound solely to the 3'-end region of positive-strand RNA, not to this region of negative-strand RNA. We suggest that 3'X-PTB interaction is involved in the specific initiation of HCV genome replication.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1997

Mutational analysis of the 5' noncoding region of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 genome.

Retrovirus particles are released by budding from the membranes of infected cells. In the course of virus production, particularly during the late stage, viral genomic RNA is incorporated specifically into virion particles. This specific incorporation of the genomic RNA requires a packaging signal sequence. A region that functions as the packaging signal was mapped to a location upstream of the gag open reading frame on the HIV-1 viral genome. In addition of this packaging signal, other cis-acting elements that are scattered throughout the genome are also required for efficient packaging. The region upstream of the splice donor site is probably important for dimer formation. Therefore, we focused on one region located between the 3' end of the primer binding site and the 5' splice donor site of HIV-1. Experiments were conducted to investigate how deletions or point mutations in this region affect both dimerization in vitro and the production of infectious virus particles. A series of RNAs of varying lengths containing the 5' noncoding region were generated, and genomic dimerization of the altered viral RNA was analyzed in vitro. One RNA construct which consisted of 112 nucleotides (nt) from nt 639 to nt 750 formed a heterodimeric complex with the RNA which consisted of 200 nucleotides from nt 551 to nt 750. We then constructed proviruses with mutations in the 639 to 750 nt region and assayed for virus production. Several mutants that lacked the complementarity necessary to form a possible stem-loop structure in this region showed decreased production of infectious virus particles. Moreover, both deletion of this region and randomization of its nucleotide sequence completely impaired infectious virus production. Thus, the way that this region affects infectious virus production may be through its RNA secondary structure.

Animals↗
PubMed1997

Specific RNA aptamers to NS3 protease domain of hepatitis C virus.

In order to isolate RNA aptamers that bind specifically to NS3 protease domain (delta NS3) of hepatitis C virus, we carried out in vitro selection procedure using RNA pool that had 30 N random core region. After repeating nine cycles of selections and amplifications, a pool of RNAs that bind specifically to the delta NS3 were selected. A comparative analysis of 45 clones that were isolated from 9th cycle revealed three main classes that contain the conserved loop sequences GANUGGGAC. Moreover, the predominant class of aptamer (class I and III) appear to inhibit the protease activity efficiently.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Long-term human T-cell culture system supporting hepatitis C virus replication.

We recently found that human T-cell leukemia virus type I-infected cloned MT-2C cells could support the replication of hepatitis C virus (HCV) up to 30 days postinoculation (p.i.). To obtain a more persistent HCV replication system using MT-2C cells, we examined the effect of various culture conditions after virus inoculation. We found that persistent HCV infection (at least 80 days) could be reproducibly achieved by reducing the temperature from 37 degrees C to 32 degrees C. Under this culture condition, HCV RNA could be detected in the cells up to 198 days p.i. Sequence analysis of HCV hypervariable region 1 revealed that certain HCV species became predominant during the culture period. We also demonstrated that virus transmission by the cell-free mode could be successfully repeated at least 4 times at 32 degrees C as opposed to only twice at 37 degrees C. This HCV-infected culture system will be useful for the various biological studies, including investigations into the mechanisms of HCV replication and multiplication.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Tyrosine kinase inhibitor herbimycin A reduces the stability of cyclin-dependent kinase Cdk6 protein in T-cells.

The Cdk6 protein level rapidly decreased after treatment with the tyrosine kinase inhibitor herbimycin A in human T-cell lines. This decrease is fairly specific, because the level of other Cdks such as Cdk2 and Cdk4 and cyclins such as cyclin D2, cyclin E and cyclin A, did not change significantly even after 24 h treatment with herbimycin A. Pulse-chase analysis revealed that the decrease in the Cdk6 protein level results from reduced stability of the protein. Our results suggest that herbimycin A-sensitive protein tyrosine kinase(s) are involved in the regulation of the Cdk6 protein level.

Animals↗