Dataset Information

Primate and feline lentivirus vector RNA packaging and propagation by heterologous lentivirus virions.

ABSTRACT: Development of safe and effective gene transfer systems is critical to the success of gene therapy protocols for human diseases. Currently, several primate lentivirus-based gene transfer systems, such as those based on human and simian immunodeficiency viruses (HIV/SIV), are being tested; however, their use in humans raises safety concerns, such as the generation of replication-competent viruses through recombination with related endogenous retroviruses or retrovirus-like elements. Due to the greater phylogenetic distance from primate lentiviruses, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is becoming the lentivirus of choice for human gene transfer systems. However, the safety of FIV-based vector systems has not been tested experimentally. Since lentiviruses such as HIV-1 and SIV have been shown to cross-package their RNA genomes, we tested the ability of FIV RNA to get cross-packaged into primate lentivirus particles such as HIV-1 and SIV, as well as a nonlentiviral retrovirus such as Mason-Pfizer monkey virus (MPMV), and vice versa. Our results reveal that FIV RNA can be cross-packaged by primate lentivirus particles such as HIV-1 and SIV and vice versa; however, a nonlentivirus particle such as MPMV is unable to package FIV RNA. Interestingly, FIV particles can package MPMV RNA but cannot propagate the vector RNA further for other steps of the retrovirus life cycle. These findings reveal that diverse retroviruses are functionally more similar than originally thought and suggest that upon coinfection of the same host, cross- or copackaging may allow distinct retroviruses to generate chimeric variants with unknown pathogenic potential.

SUBMITTER: Browning MT

PROVIDER: S-EPMC114918 | biostudies-literature | 2001 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Primate and feline lentivirus vector RNA packaging and propagation by heterologous lentivirus virions.

Browning M T MT Schmidt R D RD Lew K A KA Rizvi T A TA

Journal of virology 20010601 11

Development of safe and effective gene transfer systems is critical to the success of gene therapy protocols for human diseases. Currently, several primate lentivirus-based gene transfer systems, such as those based on human and simian immunodeficiency viruses (HIV/SIV), are being tested; however, their use in humans raises safety concerns, such as the generation of replication-competent viruses through recombination with related endogenous retroviruses or retrovirus-like elements. Due to the gr ...[more]

PMID: 11333894

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Project description:Analysis of the incorporation of cellular microRNAs (miRNAs) into highly purified HIV-1 virions revealed that this largely, but not entirely, mirrored the level of miRNA expression in the producer CD4+ T cells. Specifically, of the 58 cellular miRNAs detected at significant levels in the producer cells, only 5 were found in virions at a level 2- to 4-fold higher than that predicted on the basis of random cytoplasmic sampling. Of note, these included two miRNAs, miR-155 and miR-92a, that were reported previously to at least weakly bind HIV-1 transcripts. To test whether miRNA binding to the HIV-1 genome can induce virion incorporation, artificial miRNA target sites were introduced into the viral genome and a 10- to 40-fold increase in the packaging of the cognate miRNAs into virions was then observed, leading to the recruitment of up to 1.6 miRNA copies per virion. Importantly, this high level of incorporation significantly inhibited HIV-1 virion infectivity. These results suggest that target sites for cellular miRNAs can inhibit RNA virus replication at two distinct steps, i.e., during infection and during viral gene expression, thus explaining why a range of different RNA viruses appear to have evolved to avoid cellular miRNA binding to their genome. The genomes of RNA viruses have the potential to interact with cellular miRNAs, which could lead to their incorporation into virions, with unknown effects on virion function. Here, it is demonstrated that wild-type HIV-1 virions essentially randomly incorporate low levels of the miRNAs expressed by infected cells. However, the specific incorporation of high levels of individual cellular miRNAs can be induced by insertion of cognate target sites into the viral genome. Of note, this results in a modest but significant inhibition of virion infectivity. These data imply that cellular miRNAs have the potential to inhibit viral replication by interfering with not only viral mRNA function but also virion infectivity.

Dataset Information

Primate and feline lentivirus vector RNA packaging and propagation by heterologous lentivirus virions.

Publications

Primate and feline lentivirus vector RNA packaging and propagation by heterologous lentivirus virions.

Similar Datasets

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