An Internally Translated MAVS Variant Exposes Its Amino-terminal TRAF-Binding Motifs to Deregulate Interferon Induction.
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ABSTRACT: Activation of pattern recognition receptors and proper regulation of downstream signaling are crucial for host innate immune response. Upon infection, the NF-?B and interferon regulatory factors (IRF) are often simultaneously activated to defeat invading pathogens. Mechanisms concerning differential activation of NF-?B and IRF are not well understood. Here we report that a MAVS variant inhibits interferon (IFN) induction, while enabling NF-?B activation. Employing herpesviral proteins that selectively activate NF-?B signaling, we discovered that a MAVS variant of ~50 kDa, thus designated MAVS50, was produced from internal translation initiation. MAVS50 preferentially interacts with TRAF2 and TRAF6, and activates NF-?B. By contrast, MAVS50 inhibits the IRF activation and suppresses IFN induction. Biochemical analysis showed that MAVS50, exposing a degenerate TRAF-binding motif within its N-terminus, effectively competed with full-length MAVS for recruiting TRAF2 and TRAF6. Ablation of the TRAF-binding motif of MAVS50 impaired its inhibitory effect on IRF activation and IFN induction. These results collectively identify a new means by which signaling events is differentially regulated via exposing key internally embedded interaction motifs, implying a more ubiquitous regulatory role of truncated proteins arose from internal translation and other related mechanisms.
SUBMITTER: Minassian A
PROVIDER: S-EPMC4519330 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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