| 1. |
- Mark, Linda, et al.
(författare)
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Molecular characterization of the rhesus rhadinovirus (RRV) ORF4 gene and the RRV complement control protein it encodes
- 2007
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Ingår i: Journal of Virology. - 1098-5514. ; 81:8, s. 4166-4176
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The diversity of viral strategies to modulate complement activation indicates that this component of the immune system has significant antiviral potential. One example is the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) complement control protein (KCP), which inhibits progression of the complement cascade. Rhesus rhadinovirus (RRV), like KSHV, is a member of the subfamily Gammaherpesvirinae and currently provides the only in vivo model of KSHV pathobiology in primates. In the present study, we characterized the KCP homologue encoded by RRV, RRV complement control protein (RCP). Two strains of RRV have been sequenced to date (H26-95 and 17577), and the RCPs they encode differ substantially in structure: RCP from strain H26-95 has four complement control protein (CCP) domains, whereas RCP from strain 17577 has eight CCP domains. Transcriptional analyses of the RCP gene (ORF4, referred to herein as RCP) in infected rhesus macaque fibroblasts mapped the ends of the transcripts of both strains. They revealed that H26-95 encodes a full-length, unspliced RCP transcript, while 17577 RCP generates a full-length unspliced mRNA and two alternatively spliced transcripts. Western blotting confirmed that infected cells express RCP, and immune electron microscopy disclosed this protein on the surface of RRV virions. Functional studies of RCP encoded by both RRV strains revealed their ability to suppress complement activation by the classical (antibody-mediated) pathway. These data provide the foundation for studies into the biological significance of gammaherpesvirus complement regulatory proteins in a tractable, non-human primate model.
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| 2. |
- Okroj, Marcin, et al.
(författare)
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Characterization of the complement inhibitory function of Rhesus rhadinovirus complement control protein (RCP).
- 2009
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Ingår i: Journal of Biological Chemistry. - 1083-351X. ; 2008:Nov 6., s. 505-514
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Rhesus Rhadinovirus (RRV) is currently the closest known, fully sequenced homolog of human Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). Both these viruses encode complement inhibitors: KSHV-complement control protein (KCP) and RRV-complement control protein (RCP). Previously we characterized in detail the functional properties of KCP as complement inhibitor. Herein, we performed comparative analyses for two variants of RCP protein, encoded by RRV strains H26-95 and 17577. Both RCP variants and KCP inhibited human and rhesus complement when tested in hemolytic assays measuring all steps of activation via the classical and the alternative pathway. RCP variants from both RRV strains supported C3b- and C4b-degradation by factor I and decay-acceleration of the classical C3 convertase, similar to KCP. Additionally, the 17577 RCP variant accelerated decay of the alternative C3 convertase, which was not seen for KCP. In contrast to KCP, RCP showed no affinity to heparin and is the first described complement inhibitor in which the binding site for C3b/C4b does not interact with heparin. Molecular modeling shows a structural disruption in the region of RCP that corresponds to the KCP-heparin binding site. This makes RRV a superior model for future in vivo investigations of complement evasion, as RCP does not play a supportive role in viral attachment as KCP does.
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