Comparison of the three large polymerase proteins of influenza A, B, and C viruses

Evolutionary relatedness of the predicted gene product of RNA segment 2 of the tick-borne Dhori virus and the PB1 polymerase gene of influenza viruses

The complete nucleotide sequence of the second largest RNA segment of Dhori/India/1313/61 virus was determined and the deduced amino acid sequence was compared with the polymerase (P) proteins of influenza A, B, and C viruses. RNA segment 2 (2224 nucleotides) of Dhori virus contains a single long open reading frame that can encode a 716-amino amid polypeptide (81.3 kDa). The predicted polypeptide shares between 27 and 31% sequence identities with the PB1 polypeptides of influenza A, B, and C viruses. Among the regions most highly conserved are the sequences around the Asp-Asp motif common to many RNA polymerases. In spite of the high level of sequence identity between the Dhori RNA segment 2 gene product and the influenza A, B, and C virus PB1 proteins the amino acid composition of the Dhori protein indicates an acidic charge feature at pH 7.0 in contrast to the basic nature of the PB1 proteins of the influenza viruses. We suggest that the Dhori PB1-like protein be designated the Pα protein of this virus.

Activity of influenza C virus O-acetylesterase with O-acetyl-containing compounds

Influenza C virus (strain C/Johannesburg/1/66) was grown, harvested, purified and used as source for the enzyme O-acetylesterase (N-acyl-O-acetylneuraminate O-acetylhydrolase; EC 3.1.1.53). This activity was studied and characterized with regard to some new substrates. The pH optimum of the enzyme is around 7.6, its stability at different pH values shows a result similar to that of the pH optimum, and its activity is well maintained in the pH range from 7.0 to 8.5 (all these tests were performed with 4-nitrophenyl acetate as substrate). Remarkable differences were found in the values of both Km and Vmax, with the synthetic substrates 4-nitrophenyl acetate, 2-nitrophenyl acetate, 4-methylumbelliferyl acetate, 1-naphthyl acetate and fluorescein diacetate. The use of 4-nitrophenyl acetate, 4-methylumbelliferyl acetate or 1-naphthyl acetate as substrate seems to be convenient for routine work, but it is better to carry out the measurements in parallel with those on bovine submandibular gland mucin (the latter is a natural and commercially available substrate). It was found that 4-acetoxybenzoic acid, as well as the methyl ester of 2-acetoxybenzoic acid, but not 2-acetoxybenzoic acid itself, are cleaved by this enzyme. Triacetin, di-O-acetyladenosine, tri-O-acetyladenosine, and di-O-acetyl-N-acetyladenosine phosphate, hitherto unreported as substrates for this viral esterase, are hydrolysed at different rates by this enzyme. We conclude that the O-acetylesterase from influenza C virus has a broad specificity towards both synthetic and natural non-sialic acid-containing substrates. Zn2+, Mn2+ and Pb2+ (as their chloride salts), N-acetylneuraminic acid, 4-methyl-umbelliferone and 2-acetoxybenzoic acid (acetylsalicylic acid) did not act as inhibitors.

Structure and function of the HEF glycoprotein of influenza C virus

Soon after the first isolation of an influenza C virus from a patient, it became obvious that this virus differs from other myxoviruses in several aspects. Pronounced differences have been observed in the interactions between the virus and cell surfaces, suggesting that influenza C virus attaches to the receptors different from those recognized by other myxoviruses. While influenza A and B viruses agglutinate erythrocytes from many species, including humans, the spectrum of erythrocytes agglutinated by influenza C virus is much more restricted. Erythrocytes from rats, mice, and adult chickens are suitable for hemagglutination and hemadsorption tests; cells from other species, however, react not at all or only poorly with influenza C virus. Differences are also observed so far as hemagglutination inhibitors are concerned. A variety of glycoproteins have been shown to prevent influenza A and B viruses from agglutinating erythrocytes. In the case of influenza C virus, rat serum was for a long time the only known hemagglutination inhibitor. A difference in the receptors for influenza C virus and other myxo-viruses was also suggested by studies on the receptor-destroying enzyme. The ability of influenza C virus to inactivate its own receptors was reported soon after the first isolation of this virus from a patient. However, the influenza C enzyme did not affect the receptors of other myxoviruses and, conversely, the receptor-destroying enzyme of either of the latter viruses was unable to inactivate the receptors for influenza C virus on erythrocytes. While the enzyme of influenza A and B virus was characterized as a neuraminidase in the 1950s, even with refined methodology no such activity was detectable with influenza C virus. It is now known that both the receptor-binding and receptor-destroying activities, as well as the fusion activity of influenza C virus are mediated by the only glycoprotein present on the surface of the virus particle. The structure and functions of this protein, which is designated as HEF, are reviewed in this chapter.

Antigenic reactivity and electrophoretic migrational heterogeneity of the three polymerase proteins of type A human and animal influenza viruses

Antigenic reactivity of the three polymerase proteins PB1, PB2, and PA of type A influenza viruses of animal and human origin were analysed by radioimmunoprecipitation using monospecific antisera. Each of the polymerase monospecific antisera made against the polymerase proteins of the human A/WSN/33 (H1N1) influenza virus reacted efficiently with the homologous proteins of all the known thirteen HA subtype viruses of avian influenza virus, three subtypes of human influenza virus, swine and equine influenza viruses. This broad reactivity of each of the antisera indicated that the polymerase proteins are antigenically related among the type A influenza viruses and therefore can be considered as type specific antigens similar to the other viral internal proteins nucleoprotein (NP) and matrix protein (M). No electrophoretic migrational heterogeneity was found among the PB2 proteins of different subtype viruses, whereas PB1 protein exhibited minor variation. However, PA protein from among various viral subtypes showed considerable heterogeneity. Each of the polymerase antisera also immunoprecipitated additional antigenically related polypeptides with distinct electrophoretic mobilities from cells infected with each of the influenza viral subtypes.

Inhibition of influenza virus replication by phosphorothioate oligodeoxynucleotides

Oligodeoxynucleotides (ODNs) were synthesized and tested for their antiviral activity against influenza viruses. ODNs corresponded to the polymerase PB1 gene of either influenza A/WSN/33 virus or influenza C/JJ/50 virus. All compounds were 20 nucleotides long, including control ODNs containing mismatches. The phosphodiester ODNs (O-ODNs) failed to inhibit replication of influenza A and influenza C viruses at concentrations up to 80 microM, possibly due to intracellular nuclease digestion of the unmodified oligomers. By contrast, the phosphorothioate derivatives (S-ODNs) were found to inhibit replication of both influenza A and influenza C virus. The antiviral effect of S-ODNs against influenza A virus was found at concentrations as low as 1.25 microM and was present with mismatched oligomers. In the case of influenza C virus, the S-ODN complementary to the 3' end of the viral RNA of the PB1 gene revealed a sequence-specific antiviral activity at a concentration of 20 microM. (At the same concentration, S-ODNs with one or three mismatches showed little or no antiviral activity.) Reduction in plaque number reached six logarithms when this sequence-specific S-ODN was used at a concentration of 80 microM.