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Isolation and characterization of an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase from Nicotiana clevelandii plants infected with red clover necrotic mosaic dianthovirus.

A template-bound RNA polymerase was isolated from Nicotiana clevelandii plants infected with red clover necrotic mosaic dianthovirus (RCNMV) by differential centrifugation, solubilization with dodecyl beta-D-maltopyranoside, and chromatography on columns of Sephacryl S-400 and Q-Sepharose. Analysis of the purified polymerase by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, followed by silver staining or immunoblotting, showed that it contained virus-encoded proteins of molecular masses 27 kDa and 88 kDa together with several minor proteins possibly of host origin. After removal of endogenous RNA with micrococcal nuclease, the polymerase became template-dependent. It was also template-specific, being able to utilize as templates RNA of two strains of RCNMV, but not RNAs of three viruses in different taxonomic groups, namely cucumber mosaic cucumovirus, tomato bushy stunt tombusvirus and tomato mosaic tobamovirus. The products of RNA polymerase reactions were double-stranded RNAs corresponding to RCNMV RNAs 1 and 2. The ability of the template-dependent RNA polymerase to synthesize RNA was completely inhibited by antibodies to a peptide containing the GDD motif, whereas the activity of the template-bound enzyme was unaffected by these antibodies.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Molecular analysis of the pothos latent virus genome.

Pothos latent virus (PoLV) is an isometric virus with a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA genome of 4415 nt. The genome contains five open reading frames (ORF), coding for five proteins with approximate molecular masses of 25, 84, 40, 27 and 14 kDa, respectively. In vitro synthesized PoLV RNA was infectious to Nicotiana benthamiana plants and protoplasts, but could not support replication of the defective interfering (DI) and satellite RNAs associated with Cymbidium ringspot tombusvirus. No DI RNA related to PoLV was generated after repeated passaging with infected sap. Mutagenesis studies defined the role of the ORF 4 product (27 kDa) as a movement protein, and the ORF 5 product (14 kDa) as being responsible for symptom severity. Moreover, it was shown that the coat protein (CP) is important in regulating synthesis of the 14 kDa protein, excess production of which is lethal to infected plants. CP mutants defective in capsid formation infected plants systemically and induced severe necrotic symptoms. Conversely, CP mutants able to form apparently normal virus particles induced symptoms indistinguishable from those elicited by wild-type virus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A 38-amino-acid sequence encompassing the arm domain of the cucumber necrosis virus coat protein functions as a chloroplast transit Peptide in infected plants.

Experiments to determine the subcellular location of the coat protein (CP) of the tombusvirus Cucumber necrosis virus (CNV) have been conducted. By confocal microscopy, it was found that an agroinfiltrated CNV CP-green fluorescent protein (GFP) fusion targets chloroplasts in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves and that a 38-amino-acid (aa) region that includes the complete CP arm region plus the first 4 amino acids of the shell domain are sufficient for targeting. Western blot analyses of purified and fractionated chloroplasts showed that the 38-aa region directs import to the chloroplast stroma, suggesting that the CNV arm can function as a chloroplast transit peptide (TP) in plants. Several features of the 38-aa region are similar to features typical of chloroplast TPs, including (i) the presence of an alanine-rich uncharged region near the N terminus, followed by a short region rich in basic amino acids; (ii) a conserved chloroplast TP phosphorylation motif; (iii) the requirement that the CNV 38-aa sequence be present at the amino terminus of the imported protein; and (iv) specific proteolytic cleavage upon import into the chloroplast stroma. In addition, a region just downstream of the 38-aa sequence contains a 14-3-3 binding motif, suggesting that chloroplast targeting requires 14-3-3 binding, as has been suggested for cellular proteins that are targeted to chloroplasts. Chloroplasts of CNV-infected plants were found to contain CNV CP, but only the shell and protruding domain regions were present, indicating that CNV CP enters chloroplasts during infection and that proteolytic cleavage occurs as predicted from agroinfiltration studies. We also found that particles of a CNV CP mutant deficient in externalization of the arm region have a reduced ability to establish infection. The potential biological significance of these findings is discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Double-stranded RNA binding may be a general plant RNA viral strategy to suppress RNA silencing.

In plants, RNA silencing (RNA interference) is an efficient antiviral system, and therefore successful virus infection requires suppression of silencing. Although many viral silencing suppressors have been identified, the molecular basis of silencing suppression is poorly understood. It is proposed that various suppressors inhibit RNA silencing by targeting different steps. However, as double-stranded RNAs (dsRNAs) play key roles in silencing, it was speculated that dsRNA binding might be a general silencing suppression strategy. Indeed, it was shown that the related aureusvirus P14 and tombusvirus P19 suppressors are dsRNA-binding proteins. Interestingly, P14 is a size-independent dsRNA-binding protein, while P19 binds only 21-nucleotide ds-sRNAs (small dsRNAs having 2-nucleotide 3' overhangs), the specificity determinant of the silencing system. Much evidence supports the idea that P19 inhibits silencing by sequestering silencing-generated viral ds-sRNAs. In this study we wanted to test the hypothesis that dsRNA binding is a general silencing suppression strategy. Here we show that many plant viral silencing suppressors bind dsRNAs. Beet yellows virus Peanut P21, clump virus P15, Barley stripe mosaic virus gammaB, and Tobacco etch virus HC-Pro, like P19, bind ds-sRNAs size-selectively, while Turnip crinkle virus CP is a size-independent dsRNA-binding protein, which binds long dsRNAs as well as ds-sRNAs. We propose that size-selective ds-sRNA-binding suppressors inhibit silencing by sequestering viral ds-sRNAs, whereas size-independent dsRNA-binding suppressors inactivate silencing by sequestering long dsRNA precursors of viral sRNAs and/or by binding ds-sRNAs. The findings that many unrelated silencing suppressors bind dsRNA suggest that dsRNA binding is a general silencing suppression strategy which has evolved independently many times.

Plant Viruses↗

Flock house virus RNA replicates on outer mitochondrial membranes in Drosophila cells.

The identification and characterization of host cell membranes essential for positive-strand RNA virus replication should provide insight into the mechanisms of viral replication and potentially identify novel targets for broadly effective antiviral agents. The alphanodavirus flock house virus (FHV) is a positive-strand RNA virus with one of the smallest known genomes among animal RNA viruses, and it can replicate in insect, plant, mammalian, and yeast cells. To investigate the localization of FHV RNA replication, we generated polyclonal antisera against protein A, the FHV RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which is the sole viral protein required for FHV RNA replication. We detected protein A within 4 h after infection of Drosophila DL-1 cells and, by differential and isopycnic gradient centrifugation, found that protein A was tightly membrane associated, similar to integral membrane replicase proteins from other positive-strand RNA viruses. Confocal immunofluorescence microscopy and virus-specific, actinomycin D-resistant bromo-UTP incorporation identified mitochondria as the intracellular site of protein A localization and viral RNA synthesis. Selective membrane permeabilization and immunoelectron microscopy further localized protein A to outer mitochondrial membranes. Electron microscopy revealed 40- to 60-nm membrane-bound spherical structures in the mitochondrial intermembrane space of FHV-infected cells, similar in ultrastructural appearance to tombusvirus- and togavirus-induced membrane structures. We concluded that FHV RNA replication occurs on outer mitochondrial membranes and shares fundamental biochemical and ultrastructural features with RNA replication of positive-strand RNA viruses from other families.

Animals↗

Virus-like particles of a fish nodavirus display a capsid subunit domain organization different from that of insect nodaviruses.

The structure of recombinant virus-like particles of malabaricus grouper nervous necrosis virus (MGNNV), a fish nodavirus isolated from the grouper Epinephelus malabaricus, was determined by electron cryomicroscopy (cryoEM) and three-dimensional reconstruction at 23-A resolution. The cryoEM structure, sequence comparison, and protein fold recognition analysis indicate that the coat protein of MGNNV has two domains resembling those of tomato bushy stunt virus and Norwalk virus, rather than the expected single-domain coat protein of insect nodaviruses. The analysis implies that residues 83 to 216 fold as a beta-sandwich which forms the inner shell of the T=3 capsid and residues 217 to 308 form the trimeric surface protrusions observed in the cryoEM map. The structural similarities between fish nodaviruses and members of the tombusvirus and calicivirus groups provide significant new data for understanding the evolution of the nodavirus family.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Plant virus-derived small interfering RNAs originate predominantly from highly structured single-stranded viral RNAs.

RNA silencing is conserved in a broad range of eukaryotes and includes the phenomena of RNA interference in animals and posttranscriptional gene silencing (PTGS) in plants. In plants, PTGS acts as an antiviral system; a successful virus infection requires suppression or evasion of the induced silencing response. Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) accumulate in plants infected with positive-strand RNA viruses and provide specificity to this RNA-mediated defense. We present here the results of a survey of virus-specific siRNAs characterized by a sequence analysis of siRNAs from plants infected with Cymbidium ringspot tombusvirus (CymRSV). CymRSV siRNA sequences have a nonrandom distribution along the length of the viral genome, suggesting that there are hot spots for virus-derived siRNA generation. CymRSV siRNAs bound to the CymRSV p19 suppressor protein have the same asymmetry in strand polarity as the sequenced siRNAs and are imperfect double-stranded RNA duplexes. Moreover, an analysis of siRNAs derived from two other nonrelated positive-strand RNA viruses showed that they displayed the same asymmetry as CymRSV siRNAs. Finally, we show that Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) carrying a short inverted repeat of the phytoene desaturase (PDS) gene triggered more accumulation of PDS siRNAs than the corresponding antisense PDS sequence. Taken together, these results suggest that virus-derived siRNAs originate predominantly by direct DICER cleavage of imperfect duplexes in the most folded regions of the positive strand of the viral RNA.

Gene Silencing↗

Fungal transmission of plant viruses.

Thirty soilborne viruses or virus-like agents are transmitted by five species of fungal vectors. Ten polyhedral viruses, of which nine are in the family Tombusviridae, are acquired in the in vitro manner and do not occur within the resting spores of their vectors, Olpidium brassicae and O. bornovanus. Fungal vectors for other viruses in the family should be sought even though tombusviruses are reputed to be soil transmitted without a vector. Eighteen rod-shaped viruses belonging to the furo- and bymovirus groups and to an unclassified group are acquired in the in vivo manner and survive within the resting spores of their vector, O. brassicae, Polymyxa graminis, P. betae, and Spongospora subterranea. The viral coat protein has an essential role in in vitro transmission. With in vivo transmission a site in the coat protein-read through protein (CP-RT) of beet necrotic yellow vein furovirus determines vector transmissibility as does a site in a similar 98-kDa polyprotein of barley mild mosaic bymovirus. The mechanisms by which virions move (or are moved) into and out of the protoplasm of zoospores or of thalli needs study.

Journal Article↗

Alternatives to the species concept for virus taxonomy.

The species concept seems to be inescapably based on the occurrence, in a population, of regular genetic interchange which leads to the formation of common gene pools and on the presence of barriers to interchange which distinguish one gene pool from another. Present knowledge indicates that some types of viruses (e.g. Orthomyxoviridae, Reoviridae) may exchange genes and have a gene-pool population structure; application of the species concept here is legitimate and likely to be feasible in practice. However, it seems that other types of viruses (e.g., tobamoviruses, tombusviruses) do not indulge in regular gene exchange and that common gene pools, distinct from each other, do not occur. Rather, there is clonal multiplication, accumulation of variants, and a fanwise radiation of types with little or no genetic exchange across the rays of the fan. Here, the species concept cannot usefully be applied at either the theoretical or the practical level. If viruses within some major groups are not amenable to being classified and named as species, it follows that attempts to apply the species concept to all viruses should be abandoned. An alternative system that can embrace all cases is already used by plant virologists and merits careful examination by others. Adoption of a 'nonspecies' general approach need not exclude the proposition that in some instances virus species do exist and can be identified and named, as special subsets of the general case. If we cease to aim for the universal pigeonholing of viruses into genera and species, binomial latinized names lose their chief justification.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Genes, Viral↗

Primary structure and phylogenetic analysis of the coat protein of a Toyama isolate of tobacco necrosis virus.

The amino acid sequence of the coat protein (CP) of a tobacco necrosis virus (TNV) strain, Toyama isolate, was determined by a combination of peptide and cDNA sequencing. The deduced sequence of 276 residues was compared with CPs of other TNV isolates and other plant virus isolates of Tombusviridae. It showed the highest similarity to the TNV Nebraska isolate with 92% identity and moderate similarity to the TNV strain A with 51% identity, confirming the previous serological analysis. It also showed overall similarity with CPs of mostly genera Necrovirus and Sobemovirus, and partial similarity with CPs of genera Tombusvirus and Carmovirus. Among 13 CPs that showed overall similarity, there were 10 completely conserved residues. These included three residues that participate in Ca2+ ligation at the interfaces of virion subunits in TNV crystal structure, suggesting that similar metal binding occur in the viruses of genera Necrovirus and Sobemovirus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Internal structural anisotropy of spherical viruses studied with magnetic birefringence.

Six so called spherical viruses (four plant and two animal) are shown to exhibit magnetically induced birefringence in solution. They must therefore be magnetically and optically anisotropic. This is attributed to static structural anisotropy of the interiors as neither natural shape nor field-induced deformations are likely causes. Thus at least part of these virus cores have a symmetry differing from that of their capsids. An estimate of the average orientation of the RNA bases is given for the plant viruses: turnip yellow mosaic, bromegrass mosaic, tomato bushy stunt and turnip crinkle. The packing geometry of the nucleic acid/protein cores of adenovirus and probably influenza virus are anisotropic but to an extent that cannot be quantified.

Adenoviridae↗

Protein simulations using techniques suitable for very large systems: the cell multipole method for nonbond interactions and the Newton-Euler inverse mass operator method for internal coordinate dynamics.

Two new methods developed for molecular dynamics simulations of very large proteins are applied to a series of proteins ranging up to the protein capsid of tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV). For molecular dynamics of very large proteins and polymers, it is useful to carry out the dynamics using internal coordinates (say, torsions only) rather than Cartesian coordinates. This allows larger time steps, eliminates problems with the classical description of high energy modes, and focuses on the important degrees of freedom. The resulting equation of motion has the form. [formula: see text] where for T is the vector of generalized forces, M(theta) is the moments of inertia tensor, theta is the vector of torsions, and C is a vector containing Coriolis forces and nonbond forces. The problem is that to calculate the acceleration vector theta from M, C, and T requires inverting M(theta), an order N3 calculation. Since the number of degrees of freedom might be 300,000 for a million atom system, solving these equations every time step is impractical, restricting internal coordinate methods to small systems. The new method, Newton-Euler Inverse Mass Operator (NEIMO) dynamics, constructs the torsional accelerations vector theta = M-1 (T-C) directly by an order N process, allowing internal-coordinate dynamics to be solved for super larger (million atom) systems. The first use of the NEIMO method for molecular dynamics of proteins is presented here. A second serious difficulty for large proteins is calculation of the nonbond forces. We report here the first application to proteins of the new Cell Multipole Method (CMM) to evaluate the Coulomb and van der Waals interactions. The costs of CMM scales linearly with the number of particles while retaining an accuracy significantly better than standard nonbond methods (involving cutoffs). Results for NEIMO and CMM are given for simulations of a wide range of peptide and protein systems, including the protein capsid of TBSV with 488,000 atoms. The computational times for NEIMO and CMM are demonstrated to scale linearly with size. With NEIMO the dynamics time steps can be as large as 20 fs (for small peptides), much larger than possible with standard Cartesian coordinate dynamics. For TBSV we considered both the normal form and the high pH form, in which the Ca2+ ions are removed. These calculations lead to a contraction of the protein for both forms (probably because of ignoring the RNA core not observed in the X-ray).

Algorithms↗

De novo generation and accumulation of tomato bushy stunt virus defective interfering RNAs without serial host passage.

Studies were initiated to monitor generation and accumulation of defective interfering (DI) RNAs associated with tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV) in the absence of serial, high multiplicity of infection passage. Infections were initiated in Nicotiana clevelandii host plants and protoplast cell suspensions by inoculation with in vitro-synthesized infectious TBSV RNA transcripts containing a genomic marker. The infections were then assayed for DI-size RNAs by both Northern blot analysis and reverse transcription coupled with PCR amplification. DI-size RNAs could not be detected by Northern blot analysis in either plants or protoplasts after an evident viral infection. However, RT-PCR amplification permitted the isolation of DI-size cDNAs (600-700 nt) from plant, but not protoplast, infections as early as 8 days postinoculation. Sequence analysis of these DI-size cDNA clones revealed that they contained the four conserved regions found in all previously identified competent DI RNAs. Several DI RNA clones contained the genomic marker which confirmed their de novo generation from the input transcript inoculum. A comparison of the nucleotide sequence of these clones to previously sequenced DI RNAs, isolated from plants after multiple passages, showed that differences existed at the junctions between regions. These results demonstrate that a heterogeneous population of DI RNAs accumulated in plants in the absence of serial host passage. In addition, the similarity of these DI RNAs to previously characterized DI RNAs that accumulate upon passage indicates that evolution can occur very rapidly within the initially inoculated plant.

Base Sequence↗

Tomato bushy stunt virus spread is regulated by two nested genes that function in cell-to-cell movement and host-dependent systemic invasion.

We have investigated the importance of two small nested genes (p19 and p22) located near the 3' end of the genome of tomato bushy stunt virus (TBSV) for infectivity in several hosts. Our results show that both genes are dispensable for replication and transcription and that the p19 gene encodes a soluble protein, whereas the p22 gene specifies a membrane-associated protein. Assays using TBSV derivatives that have the beta-glucuronidase gene substituted for the capsid protein gene demonstrate that p22 is required for cell-to-cell movement in all plants tested. Mutations inactivating p19 ameliorate the severe necrotic systemic symptoms elicited by wild-type TBSV in Nicotiana benthamiana and Nicotiana clevelandii, but p19 does not obviously affect movement in these hosts. However, in some local lesion hosts p19 influences the lesion diameter, which suggests that it has an auxiliary host-dependent role in movement. This notion is supported by the observation that p19 is required for long-distance spread of TBSV in spinach and for systemic infection of pepper plants. Thus, movement of TBSV is regulated by two nested genes; p22 governs cell-to-cell movement and p19 has a host-specific role in systemic invasion.

Base Sequence↗

Characterization and biological activity of DI RNA dimers formed during cucumber necrosis virus coinfections.

Coinfections of synthetic transcripts from a cDNA clone of cucumber necrosis virus (CNV) and cDNA clones of defective interfering (DI) RNAs were previously demonstrated to contain DI-like RNAs approximately twice the size of the DI RNA used for co-inoculation. Analysis of these RNAs revealed that they are head-to-tail repeats of CNV DI RNA sequence (dimers). Sequence analysis of 21 cloned dimer junctions indicated that approximately half of the junction sequences correspond to precise fusions of monomer units. A cDNA clone corresponding to a dimer of DI RNA 42 was constructed. Synthetic DI RNA 42 dimer transcripts were biologically active in coinfections, resulting in the accumulation of high levels of DI RNA 42 monomers. The possibility that dimers serve as templates for the generation of DI RNA monomers is discussed.

Base Sequence↗

The tomato bushy stunt virus replicase proteins are coordinately expressed and membrane associated.

Two open reading frames at the 5'-end of the tomato bushy stunt virus genomic RNA are predicted to encode a 33-kDa (p33) protein and its 92-kDa (p92) readthrough product. From amino acid sequence comparisons with other small single-stranded RNA viruses, these proteins resemble viral components of the replicase-transcriptase complex. To investigate the accumulation of these proteins in the infected cell, two chimeric proteins were produced that expressed either a portion of p33 or the carboxy-terminal "half" of p92 fused with glutathione S-transferase, and polyclonal ascites fluids specific to p33 or p92 were elicited in mice. As expected, the anti-p33 antibody recognized p33 and the p92 readthrough protein, but the anti-p92 antibody was specific for p92. Immunoblot analyses revealed that at an early stage of infection both proteins were associated with the membrane fractions isolated from virus-infected plants, but later in the infection, prior to collapse of the tissues, these proteins were also associated with the cytoplasmic fraction. At all time points in plants and protoplasts p33 was about 20-fold more abundant than p92. A series of mutations derived from an infectious cDNA clone demonstrated that both the p33 and the p92 proteins were required for replication in protoplasts and the ratio of the two proteins was maintained in the replication-competent mutants. The wild-type amber (UAG) and in vitro-generated ochre (UAA) readthrough codon derivatives replicated in protoplasts. However, the tyrosine mutants (UAC or UAU) that were predicted to express only p92 were not viable in protoplasts.

Animals↗

Immunodetection, expression strategy and complementation of turnip crinkle virus p28 and p88 replication components.

The plus-sense RNA genome of turnip crinkle virus (TCV) encodes at its 5' end a 28-kDa protein of unspecified function. Readthrough suppression of the p28 stop codon allows for the production of an 88-kDa product which is required for genome replication. Immunological analysis of the expression of p28 and p88 demonstrated that: (i) the genome directs the synthesis of polypeptides of approximately 28 and 88 kDa, (ii) the 88-kDa protein is immunologically related to p28, consistent with p88 being a readthrough product, and (iii) p28, but not p88, is detectable in vivo. An in vivo assay, in which readthrough is linked to the expression of a beta-glucuronidase reporter gene, showed that readthrough of the p28 amber stop codon occurs with an efficiency of approximately 1%. A similar efficiency of readthrough was observed when an altered context from the nonviable TCV mutant, mA2, containing a disrupted secondary structure (FfFa) spanning the p28 termination codon, was tested. This result suggests that the defective phenotype of mA2 is likely not linked to an alteration in readthrough efficiency. Additional studies demonstrated that complementation occurs in coinoculations with two nonviable TCV mutants, RT and APA, which are unable to express either p28 or p88, respectively. This result verifies that p28 is essential for TCV genome replication and provides the first definitive evidence for the role of a 5'-proximal open reading frame for any member of the family Tombusviridae.

Base Sequence↗

Both codon context and leader length contribute to efficient expression of two overlapping open reading frames of a cucumber necrosis virus bifunctional subgenomic mRNA.

The importance of codon context and leader length in the translational regulation of p20 and p21 from the bifunctional 0.9-kb subgenomic mRNA cucumber necrosis virus was investigated. Nucleotide substitutions introduced into the -3 and +4 positions of the p21 AUG codon (where the A of the AUG is +1) verified that purines in these positions are favored and demonstrated the similar contribution of the -3 and +4 positions to the efficiency of initiation codon selection in plants. The effect of nucleotide substitutions in the +5 position, most clearly demonstrated when pyrimidines occupy the -3 and +4 positions, also provided direct insight into the influence of the +5 position in plants. The codon context of the upstream p21 initiation codon affected expression from the downstream p20 AUG codon. In addition, an increase in the length of the subgenomic mRNA leader decreased expression from the downstream p20 initiation site. These latter observations are in accordance with the "Kozak rules" for accession of internal AUG codons by leaky ribosomal scanning and provide the first example of an effect of leader length on the efficiency of translation initiation in a plant (viral) mRNA.

Base Sequence↗