Properties of poliovirus associated protein kinase

Correlation between structure, protein composition, morphogenesis and cytopathology of Glossina pallidipes salivary gland hypertrophy virus

The Glossina pallidipes salivary gland hypertrophy virus (GpSGHV) is a dsDNA virus with rod-shaped, enveloped virions. Its 190 kb genome contains 160 putative protein-coding ORFs. Here, the structural components, protein composition and associated aspects of GpSGHV morphogenesis and cytopathology were investigated. Four morphologically distinct structures: the nucleocapsid, tegument, envelope and helical surface projections, were observed in purified GpSGHV virions by electron microscopy. Nucleocapsids were present in virogenic stroma within the nuclei of infected salivary gland cells, whereas enveloped virions were located in the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm of infected cells appeared disordered and the plasma membranes disintegrated. Treatment of virions with 1 % NP-40 efficiently partitioned the virions into envelope and nucleocapsid fractions. The fractions were separated by SDS-PAGE followed by in-gel trypsin digestion and analysis of the tryptic peptides by liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray and tandem mass spectrometry. Using the MaxQuant program with Andromeda as a database search engine, a total of 45 viral proteins were identified. Of these, ten and 15 were associated with the envelope and the nucleocapsid fractions, respectively, whilst 20 were detected in both fractions, most likely representing tegument proteins. In addition, 51 host-derived proteins were identified in the proteome of the virus particle, 13 of which were verified to be incorporated into the mature virion using a proteinase K protection assay. This study provides important information about GpSGHV biology and suggests options for the development of future anti-GpSGHV strategies by interfering with virus-host interactions.

Poliovirus-associated protein kinase: destabilization of the virus capsid and stimulation of the phosphorylation reaction by Zn2+

The previously described poliovirus-associated protein kinase activity phosphorylates viral proteins VP0 and VP2 as well as exogenous proteins in the presence of Mg2+. In this paper, the effect of Zn2+ on the phosphorylation reaction and the stability of the poliovirus capsid has been studied in detail and compared to that of Mg2+. Phosphorylation patterns of viral and other proteins depend on the divalent cation present. In the presence of Zn2+, phosphorylation of capsid proteins VP2 and VP4 is significantly higher while phosphorylation of VP0 and exogenous phosphate acceptor proteins is not detected. Our results indicate the activation of more than one virus-associated protein kinase by Zn2+. The ion-dependent behavior of the enzyme activities is observed independently of whether the virus was obtained from HeLa or green monkey kidney cells. The poliovirus capsid is destabilized by Zn2+. The destabilization leads to a substantially increased permeability of virus particles to ethidium bromide and RNase, concomitant with decreased infectivity of the sample. This alteration of the poliovirus capsid structure is a prerequisite for effective phosphorylation of viral capsid proteins. The increased level of phosphorylation of viral capsid proteins results in further destabilization of the viral capsid. As a result of the conformational changes, poliovirus-associated protein kinase activities dissociate from the virus particle. High-performance liquid chromatography-purified viral protein VP2 is phosphorylated by the released enzymes on serine, threonine, and tyrosine in the presence of Zn2+. We suggest that the destabilizing effect of phosphorylation on the viral capsid plays a role in uncoating of poliovirus.