Influenza A virus utilizes a suboptimal Kozak sequence to fine-tune virus replication and host response

The Hierarchical Sequence Requirements of the H1 Subtype-Specific Noncoding Regions of Influenza A Virus

The genome of influenza A virus consists of eight single-stranded viral RNA (vRNA) segments. The nonconserved noncoding regions (NCRs) at the 3' and 5' termini of each segment show extremely low divergence and mutation rate. They appear as segment specific among the eight segments and also subtype specific among different subtype-determinant hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) segments. In order to acquire in-depth knowledge on the sequence requirements of the segment-specific or subtype-specific NCRs (ssNCRs), we, in the context of WSN (H1N1) reverse genetics, designed a virus random nucleotide selection assay (vRNSA) in which we generated pHW2000-HA plasmid libraries with random nucleotides in each grouped nucleotide positions in the 3' and 5' H1-ssNCRs, followed by virus rescue, serial passage, and deep sequencing. The resulting sequence logos present a visualized dynamic overview of the hierarchical sequence requirements of the 3' and 5' H1-ssNCRs. It showed that, in the process of continuous passage, the 3' H1-ssNCR, in general, stabilized more quickly than the 5' H1-ssNCR. The nucleotides close to the highly conserved 3' and 5' promoter regions showed higher sequence stringency than nucleotides away from the promoter regions. All stabilized sequences displayed a common feature of high A/U ratios. Especially with our mutational function analyses, we demonstrate that the 3' promoter-proximal nucleotides could cooperatively exert a direct effect on the transcription and replication of the HA segment. Together, these results provide in-depth knowledge for understanding the NCRs of influenza A virus. IMPORTANCE The segment-specific and subtype-specific nonconserved noncoding regions (ssNCRs) at both 3' and 5' ends of viral RNA segments of influenza A virus are largely conserved among the same segments of different viruses. However, the function-related sequence requirements of these ssNCRs remain unclear. In this study, through a novel self-designed vRNSA approach, we present a visualized dynamic overview diagram directly reflecting the hierarchical sequence requirements within and between the 3' and 5' H1-ssNCRs. The in-depth functional mutagenesis analyses further revealed that specific nucleotides in the 3' promoter-proximal region could cooperatively exert a direct effect on viral RNA transcription and replication. This work further advanced our knowledge in understanding the nonconserved noncoding regions of influenza A viruses.

Interactions between Influenza A Virus Nucleoprotein and Gene Segment Untranslated Regions Facilitate Selective Modulation of Viral Gene Expression

The influenza A virus (IAV) genome is divided into eight negative-sense, single-stranded RNA segments. Each segment exhibits a unique level and temporal pattern of expression; however, the exact mechanisms underlying the patterns of individual gene segment expression are poorly understood. We previously demonstrated that a single substitution in the viral nucleoprotein (NP:F346S) selectively modulates neuraminidase (NA) gene segment expression while leaving other segments largely unaffected. Given what is currently known about NP function, there is no obvious explanation for how changes in NP can selectively modulate the replication of individual gene segments. In this study, we found that the specificity of this effect for the NA segment is virus strain specific and depends on the untranslated region (UTR) sequences of the NA segment. While the NP:F346S substitution did not significantly alter the RNA binding or oligomerization activities of NP in vitro, it specifically decreased the ability of NP to promote NA segment viral RNA (vRNA) synthesis. In addition to NP residue F346, we identified two other adjacent aromatic residues in NP (Y385 and F479) capable of similarly regulating NA gene segment expression, suggesting a larger role for this domain in gene-segment specific regulation. Our findings reveal a novel role for NP in selective regulation of viral gene segment replication and provide a framework for understanding how the expression patterns of individual viral gene segments can be modulated during adaptation to new host environments. IMPORTANCE Influenza A virus (IAV) is a respiratory pathogen that remains a significant source of morbidity and mortality. Escape from host immunity or emergence into new host species often requires mutations that modulate the functional activities of the viral glycoproteins hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA), which are responsible for virus attachment to and release from host cells, respectively. Maintaining the functional balance between the activities of HA and NA is required for fitness across multiple host systems. Thus, selective modulation of viral gene expression patterns may be a key determinant of viral immune escape and cross-species transmission potential. We identified a novel mechanism by which the viral nucleoprotein (NP) gene can selectively modulate NA segment replication and gene expression through interactions with the segment UTRs. Our work highlights an unexpected role for NP in selective regulation of expression from the individual IAV gene segments.

Synergistic Effect between 3'-Terminal Noncoding and Adjacent Coding Regions of the Influenza A Virus Hemagglutinin Segment on Template Preference

The influenza A virus genome is comprised of eight single-stranded negative-sense viral RNA (vRNA) segments. Each of the eight vRNA segments contains segment-specific nonconserved noncoding regions (NCRs) of similar sequence and length in different influenza A virus strains. However, in the subtype-determinant segments, encoding hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA), the segment-specific noncoding regions are subtype specific, varying significantly in sequence and length at both the 3' and 5' termini among different subtypes. The significance of these subtype-specific noncoding regions (ssNCR) in the influenza virus replication cycle is not fully understood. In this study, we show that truncations of the 3'-end H1-subtype-specific noncoding region (H1-ssNCR) resulted in recombinant viruses with decreased HA vRNA replication and attenuated growth phenotype, although the vRNA replication was not affected in single-template RNP reconstitution assays. The attenuated viruses were unstable, and point mutations at nucleotide position 76 or 56 in the adjacent coding region of HA vRNA were found after serial passage. The mutations restored the HA vRNA replication and reversed the attenuated virus growth phenotype. We propose that the terminal noncoding and adjacent coding regions act synergistically to ensure optimal levels of HA vRNA replication in a multisegment environment. These results provide novel insights into the role of the 3'-end nonconserved noncoding regions and adjacent coding regions on template preference in multiple-segmented negative-strand RNA viruses. IMPORTANCE While most influenza A virus vRNA segments contain segment-specific nonconserved noncoding regions of similar length and sequence, these regions vary considerably both in length and sequence in the segments encoding HA and NA, the two major antigenic determinants of influenza A viruses. In this study, we investigated the function of the 3'-end H1-ssNCR and observed a synergistic effect between the 3'-end H1-ssNCR nucleotides and adjacent coding nucleotide(s) of the HA segment on template preference in a multisegment environment. The results unravel an additional level of complexity in the regulation of RNA replication in multiple-segmented negative-strand RNA viruses.

Dual Roles of the Hemagglutinin Segment-Specific Noncoding Nucleotides in the Extended Duplex Region of the Influenza A Virus RNA Promoter

We recently reported that the segment-specific noncoding regions (NCRs) of the hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) segments are subtype specific, varying significantly in sequence and length at both the 3' and 5' ends. Interestingly, we found that nucleotides CC at positions 13 and 14 at the 3' end and GUG at positions 14 to 16 at the 5' end (termed 14' and 16' to distinguish them from 3' positions) are absolutely conserved among all HA subtype-specific NCRs. These HA segment-specific NCR nucleotides are located in the extended duplex region of the viral RNA promoter. In order to understand the significance of these highly conserved HA segment-specific NCR nucleotides in the virus life cycle, we performed extensive mutagenesis on the HA segment-specific NCR nucleotides and studied their functional significance in regulating influenza A virus replication in the context of the HA segment with both RNP reconstitution and virus infection systems. We found that the base pairing of the 3'-end 13 position with the 5'-end 14' position (^3'13-^5'14') position is critical for RNA promoter activity while the identity of the base pair is critical in determining HA segment packaging. Moreover, the identity of the residue at the 3'-end 14 position is functionally more important in regulating virus genome packaging than in regulating viral RNA synthesis. Taken together, these results demonstrated that the HA segment-specific NCR nucleotides in the extended duplex region of the promoter not only form part of the promoter but also play a key role in controlling virus selective genome packaging.

IMPORTANCE

The segment-specific complementary nucleotides (13 to 15 in the 3' end and 14' to 16' in the 5' end) in the extended duplex region of the influenza virus RNA promoter vary significantly among different segments and have rarely been studied. Here, we performed mutagenesis analysis of the highly conserved HA segment-specific nucleotides in the extended duplex region and examined their effects on virus replication in the context of the influenza A/WSN/33 (WSN) virus infection. We found that these HA segment-specific nucleotides not only act as a part of the RNA promoter but also play a critical role in HA segment packaging. Therefore, we showed experimentally, for the first time, the requirement of the nucleotides in the extended duplex region for the RNA promoter and also identified specific noncoding residues in regulating HA segment packaging. This work has implications for the development of attenuated vaccine strains and for elucidation the mechanisms of the virus genome packaging.