分类: 生物学 >> 生物物理学 提交时间: 2016-05-11
摘要: Influenza A viruses (IAVs) rely on host factors to support their life cycle, as viral proteins hijack or interact with cellular proteins to execute their functions. Identification and understanding of these factors would increase our knowledge of the molecular mechanisms manipulated by the viruses. In this study, we searched for novel binding partners of the influenza A virus NS2 protein, the nuclear export protein responsible for overcoming host range restriction, by a yeast two-hybrid screening assay and glutathione S-transferase-pulldown and coimmunoprecipitation assays and identified AIMP2, a potent tumor suppressor that usually functions to regulate protein stability, as one of the major NS2-binding candidates. We found that the presence of NS2 protected AIMP2 from ubiquitin-mediated degradation in NS2-transfected cells and AIMP2 functioned as a positive regulator of IAV replication. Interestingly, AIMP2 had no significant effect on NS2 but enhanced the stability of the matrix protein M1. Further, we provide evidence that AIMP2 recruitment switches the modification of M1 from ubiquitination to SUMOylation, which occurs on the same attachment site (K242) on M1 and thereby promotes M1-mediated viral ribonucleoprotein complex nuclear export to increase viral replication. Collectively, our results reveal a new mechanism of AIMP2 mediation of influenza virus replication. IMPORTANCE Although the ubiquitination of M1 during IAV infection has been observed, the precise modification site and the molecular consequences of this modification remain obscure. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that ubiquitin and SUMO compete for the same lysine (K242) on M1 and the interaction of NS2 with AIMP2 facilitates the switch of the M1 modification from ubiquitination to SUMOylation, thus increasing viral replication.
分类: 生物学 >> 生物物理学 >> 细胞生物学 提交时间: 2016-05-12
摘要: Specific recognition of centromere-specific histone variant CENP-A-containing chromatin by CENP-N is an essential process in the assembly of the kinetochore complex at centromeres prior to mammalian cell division. However, the mechanisms of CENP-N recruitment to centromeres/kinetochores remain unknown. Here, we show that a CENP-A-specific RG loop (Arg80/Gly81) plays an essential and dual regulatory role in this process. The RG loop assists the formation of a compact "ladder-like" structure of CENP-A chromatin, concealing the loop and thus impairing its role in recruiting CENP-N. Upon G1/S-phase transition, however, centromeric chromatin switches from the compact to an open state, enabling the now exposed RG loop to recruit CENP-N prior to cell division. Our results provide the first insights into the mechanisms by which the recruitment of CENP-N is regulated by the structural transitions between compaction and relaxation of centromeric chromatin during the cell cycle.