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Mutational analysis of a viral RNA element that counteracts rapid RNA decay by interaction with the polyadenylate tail.

ABSTRACT: We previously demonstrated that the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus polyadenylated nuclear RNA contains a 79-nt cis-acting element, the ENE, which allows intronless polyadenylated transcripts to accumulate to high nuclear levels by protecting them from rapid degradation. We proposed a model based on the predicted structure of the ENE in which a U-rich internal loop hybridizes with the 3'-polyadenylate (polyA) tail to sequester it from exonucleolytic attack. We have tested this model by mutational analysis of the ENE. Point mutations in the predicted U-rich internal loop and in the flanking stems abolish the ENE's ability to (i) interact with the polyA tail, (ii) inhibit deadenylation in vitro, and (iii) stabilize transcripts in vivo. In all but one case, compensatory mutations in the flanking stems restore ENE activities, demonstrating the importance of these stems and uncovering a unique role for the loop-proximal G-C base pair in the lower stem. Increasing the U content of the U-rich internal loop surprisingly decreases stability in vivo but does not affect deadenylation in vitro, comparable to the effects of deleting certain "unstructured" regions of the ENE. Taken together, our data support the formation of the proposed ENE secondary structure in vivo and argue that the specific ENE structure inhibits rapid RNA decay in cis by engaging in a limited set of base-pairing interactions with the polyA tail.

SUBMITTER: Conrad NK

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1965527 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Mutational analysis of a viral RNA element that counteracts rapid RNA decay by interaction with the polyadenylate tail.

Conrad Nicholas K NK Shu Mei-Di MD Uyhazi Katherine E KE Steitz Joan A JA

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20070611 25

We previously demonstrated that the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus polyadenylated nuclear RNA contains a 79-nt cis-acting element, the ENE, which allows intronless polyadenylated transcripts to accumulate to high nuclear levels by protecting them from rapid degradation. We proposed a model based on the predicted structure of the ENE in which a U-rich internal loop hybridizes with the 3'-polyadenylate (polyA) tail to sequester it from exonucleolytic attack. We have tested this model by m ...[more]

PMID: 17563387

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Project description:Primary infection of a plant with a pathogen that causes high accumulation of salicylic acid in the plant typically via a hypersensitive response confers enhanced resistance against secondary infection with a broad spectrum of pathogens, including viruses. This phenomenon is called systemic acquired resistance (SAR), which is a plant priming for adaption to repeated biotic stress. However, the molecular mechanisms of SAR-mediated enhanced inhibition, especially of virus infection, remain unclear. Here, we show that SAR against cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) in tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum) involves a calmodulin-like protein, rgs-CaM. We previously reported the antiviral function of rgs-CaM, which binds to and directs degradation of viral RNA silencing suppressors (RSSs), including CMV 2b, via autophagy. We found that rgs-CaM-mediated immunity is ineffective against CMV infection in normally growing tobacco plants but is activated as a result of SAR induction via salicylic acid signaling. We then analyzed the effect of overexpression of rgs-CaM on salicylic acid signaling. Overexpressed and ectopically expressed rgs-CaM induced defense reactions, including cell death, generation of reactive oxygen species, and salicylic acid signaling. Further analysis using a combination of the salicylic acid analogue benzo-(1,2,3)-thiadiazole-7-carbothioic acid S-methyl ester (BTH) and the Ca2+ ionophore A23187 revealed that rgs-CaM functions as an immune receptor that induces salicylic acid signaling by simultaneously perceiving both viral RSS and Ca2+ influx as infection cues, implying its autoactivation. Thus, secondary infection of SAR-induced tobacco plants with CMV seems to be effectively inhibited through 2b recognition and degradation by rgs-CaM, leading to reinforcement of antiviral RNA silencing and other salicylic acid-mediated antiviral responses.IMPORTANCE Even without an acquired immune system like that in vertebrates, plants show enhanced whole-plant resistance against secondary infection with pathogens; this so-called systemic acquired resistance (SAR) has been known for more than half a century and continues to be extensively studied. SAR-induced plants strongly and rapidly express a number of antibiotics and pathogenesis-related proteins targeted against secondary infection, which can account for enhanced resistance against bacterial and fungal pathogens but are not thought to control viral infection. This study showed that enhanced resistance against cucumber mosaic virus is caused by a tobacco calmodulin-like protein, rgs-CaM, which detects and counteracts the major viral virulence factor (RNA silencing suppressor) after SAR induction. rgs-CaM-mediated SAR illustrates the growth versus defense trade-off in plants, as it targets the major virulence factor only under specific biotic stress conditions, thus avoiding the cost of constitutive activation while reducing the damage from virus infection.

Dataset Information

Mutational analysis of a viral RNA element that counteracts rapid RNA decay by interaction with the polyadenylate tail.

Publications

Mutational analysis of a viral RNA element that counteracts rapid RNA decay by interaction with the polyadenylate tail.

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