A Conserved Glycine Residue Is Required for Proper Functioning of a Baculovirus VP39 Protein

BV/ODV-E26 is a conserved baculoviral inhibitory factor for optimizing viral virulence in lepidopteran hosts

Alphabaculoviruses induce abnormal behavior in lepidopteran larval hosts. A baculoviral gene, bv/odv-e26, is crucial for behavioral manipulation in Bombyx mori larvae by Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV). However, how bv/odv-e26 fulfills its role in this phenotype remains largely unknown. In this study, we found that the overexpression of BmNPV bv/odv-e26 delayed viral infection in cultured cells and decreased pathogenicity in B. mori larvae. We also discovered that homologs of bv/odv-e26 are conserved more widely in alphabaculoviruses than previously thought. The inhibitory activity was demonstrated in bv/odv-e26 homologs of phylogenetically close and distant baculoviruses, indicating conserved inhibitory function among alphabaculoviruses. Furthermore, locomotory analyses revealed that bv/odv-e26 increased larval locomotory activity but had little effect on the timing of abnormal behavior initiation. Collectively, our findings demonstrate that bv/odv-e26 is a baculoviral inhibitory factor that is widely conserved in the genus alphabaculovirus and may reduce viral virulence for successful host behavioral manipulation.

The conserved cysteines at position 18, 36, and 49 of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus VP39 are essential for virus replication

Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus orf89 (vp39) encodes the major capsid protein VP39. Multiple alignments of protein sequences showed that VP39 has 8 conserved cysteine (Cys) residues. Cysteine residues play an important role in proper function of a protein. To determine the importance of these conserved cysteine residues for virus proliferation, a series of recombinant viruses harboring VP39-Cys mutants were constructed. Viral growth curves and transmission electron microscopy showed that mutation of Cys29, Cys132, Cys169, Cys229, or Cys232 of VP39 to alanine did not affect budded virion production; however, the mutation of Cys18, Cys36, or Cys49 to alanine resulted in interruption of capsid assembly. Co-immunoprecipitation assays showed that mutations of these 8 cysteines individually or simultaneously had no effect on self-association of VP39. Immunofluorescence analysis by confocal microscopy revealed that the subcellular localization of VP39 with mutations in Cys18, Cys36 or Cys49 was exclusively distributed in the cytoplasm of a cell regardless of virus infection or not, while the wild-type VP39 or the VP39 carrying mutations in Cys29, Cys132, Cys169, Cys229, or Cys232 was distributed throughout the cytoplasm and the nucleus. Our results demonstrated that Cys18, Cys36, and Cys49 are essential for the proper localization of VP39, which is a prerequisite for successful nucleocapsid assembly of the virus.

Codon Optimization-based Whole-gene Scanning Identifies Hidden Nucleotides Essential for Bombyx mori Nucleopolyhedrovirus polyhedrin Hyperexpression

During the late stage of infection, alphabaculoviruses produce many occlusion bodies (OBs) in the nuclei of the insect host's cells through the hyperexpression of polyhedrin (POLH), a major OB component encoded by polh. The strong polh promoter has been used to develop a baculovirus expression vector system for recombinant protein expression in cultured insect cells and larvae. However, the relationship between POLH accumulation and the polh coding sequence remains largely unelucidated. This study aimed to assess the importance of polh codon usage and/or nucleotide sequences in POLH accumulation by generating a baculovirus Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) expressing mutant polh (co-polh) optimized according to the codon preference of its host insect. Although the deduced amino acid sequence of CO-POLH was the same as that of wild-type POLH, POLH accumulation was significantly lower in cells infected with the co-polh mutant. This reduction was due to decreased polh mRNA levels rather than translational repression. Analysis of mutant viruses with chimeric polh revealed that a 30 base-pair (bp) 5' proximal polh coding region was necessary for maintaining high polh mRNA levels. Sequence comparison of wild-type polh and co-polh identified five nucleotide differences in this region, indicating that these nucleotides were critical for polh hyperexpression. Furthermore, luciferase reporter assays showed that the 30 bp 5' coding region was sufficient for maintaining the polh promoter-driven high level of polh mRNA. Thus, our whole-gene scanning by codon optimization identified important hidden nucleotides for polh hyperexpression in alphabaculoviruses.

Helical reconstruction of VP39 reveals principles for baculovirus nucleocapsid assembly

Baculoviruses are insect-infecting pathogens with wide applications as biological pesticides, in vitro protein production vehicles and gene therapy tools. Its cylindrical nucleocapsid, which encapsulates and protects the circular double-stranded viral DNA encoding proteins for viral replication and entry, is formed by the highly conserved major capsid protein VP39. The mechanism for VP39 assembly remains unknown. We use electron cryomicroscopy to determine a 3.2 Å helical reconstruction of an infectious nucleocapsid of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus, revealing how dimers of VP39 assemble into a 14-stranded helical tube. We show that VP39 comprises a distinct protein fold conserved across baculoviruses, which includes a Zinc finger domain and a stabilizing intra-dimer sling. Analysis of sample polymorphism shows that VP39 assembles in several closely-related helical geometries. This VP39 reconstruction reveals general principles for baculoviral nucleocapsid assembly.

Functional characterization of Microplitis demolitor bracovirus genes that encode nucleocapsid components

IMPORTANCE

Understanding how bracoviruses (BVs) function in wasps is of broad interest in the study of virus evolution. This study characterizes most of the Microplitis demolitor bracovirus (MdBV) genes whose products are nucleocapsid components. Results indicate several genes unknown outside of nudiviruses and BVs are essential for normal capsid assembly. Results also indicate most MdBV tyrosine recombinase family members and the DNA binding protein p6.9-1 are required for DNA processing and packaging into nucleocapsids.

Helical reconstruction of VP39 reveals principles for baculovirus nucleocapsid assembly

Baculoviruses are insect-infecting pathogens with wide applications as biological pesticides, in vitro protein production vehicles and gene therapy tools. Its cylindrical nucleocapsid, which encapsulates and protects the circular double-stranded viral DNA encoding proteins for viral replication and entry, is formed by the highly conserved major capsid protein VP39. The mechanism for VP39 assembly remains unknown. We determined a 3.2 Å electron cryomicroscopy helical reconstruction of an infectious nucleocapsid of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus, revealing how dimers of VP39 assemble into a 14-stranded helical tube. We show that VP39 comprises a unique protein fold conserved across baculoviruses, which includes a Zinc finger domain and a stabilizing intra-dimer sling. Analysis of sample polymorphism revealed that VP39 assembles in several closely-related helical geometries. This VP39 reconstruction reveals general principles for baculoviral nucleocapsid assembly.

Impact of Group II Baculovirus IAPs on Virus-Induced Apoptosis in Insect Cells

Apoptosis plays an important role in virus-host interactions and is a major element of the insect immune response. Exploring the regulatory mechanisms of virus-induced apoptosis through the expression of apoptotic genes holds important research and application value. Functional research on the reported inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) mainly focuses on the group I baculovirus, while the functions of the group II baculovirus IAPs remains unclear. To explore its role in the regulation of the apoptosis of insect cells, we constructed the transient expression vector (pIE1 vectors) and the recombinant baculovirus expressing Bsiap genes (from the Buzura suppressaria nucleopolyhedrovirus) of the group II baculovirus. Apoptosis gene expression results and the virus-induced apoptosis rate show that the overexpression of BsIAP1 could promote apoptosis in insect cells. However, the overexpression of BsIAP2 and BsIAP3 decreases the expression of apoptotic genes, revealing an inhibitory effect. Results on the impact of baculovirus-induced apoptosis also confirm that BsIAP1 reduces viral nucleocapsid expression and the baculovirus titer, while BsIAP2 and BsIAP3 increase them significantly. Furthermore, compared with single expression, the co-expression of BsIAP2 and BsIAP3 significantly reduces the rate of virus-induced apoptosis and improves the expression of nucleocapsids and the titer of offspring virus, indicating the synergistic effect on BsIAP2 and BsIAP3. In addition, combined expression of all three BsIAPs significantly reduced levels of intracellular apoptosis-related genes (including apoptosis and anti-apoptosis genes), as well as apoptosis rate and progeny virus titer, indicating that life activities in insect cells are also inhibited. These findings reveal the relationship between apoptosis and group II baculovirus IAP, which provide an experimental and theoretical basis for further exploration of the molecular mechanism between group II baculoviruses and insect cells.

Molecular mechanism responsible for the hyperexpression of baculovirus polyhedrin

One of the amazing phenomena in the baculovirus life cycle is the hyperexpression of the very late gene, polyhedrin (polh), causing the production of the occlusion bodies where progeny virions are embedded. However, to date, the molecular mechanism underlying its hyperexpression is not completely elucidated. Considering that, in this review, the mechanism responsible for its hyperexpression from the previous studies up to now was comprehensively summarized from three aspects, namely, the structure characteristics of the polh promoter and transcription regulation, the structure and translation regulation of the polh mRNA, and especially the regulators that influence the expression of polh gene. Moreover, this review will help us obtain a better understanding about the hyperexpression of polh, and also provide guidance for improving the expression efficiency of the foreign proteins by adopting the baculovirus expression vector system.

Cross Talk between Viruses and Insect Cells Cytoskeleton

Viruses are excellent manipulators of host cellular machinery, behavior, and life cycle, with the host cell cytoskeleton being a primordial viral target. Viruses infecting insects generally enter host cells through clathrin-mediated endocytosis or membrane fusion mechanisms followed by transport of the viral particles to the corresponding replication sites. After viral replication, the viral progeny egresses toward adjacent cells and reaches the different target tissues. Throughout all these steps, actin and tubulin re-arrangements are driven by viruses. The mechanisms used by viruses to manipulate the insect host cytoskeleton are well documented in the case of alphabaculoviruses infecting Lepidoptera hosts and plant viruses infecting Hemiptera vectors, but they are not well studied in case of other insect-virus systems such as arboviruses-mosquito vectors. Here, we summarize the available knowledge on how viruses manipulate the insect host cell cytoskeleton, and we emphasize the primordial role of cytoskeleton components in insect virus motility and the need to expand the study of this interaction.

Viewing SARS-CoV-2 Nucleocapsid Protein in Terms of Molecular Flexibility

The latest coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pneumonia leading to the pandemic, contains 29 proteins. Among them, nucleocapsid protein (NCoV2) is one of the abundant proteins and shows multiple functions including packaging the RNA genome during the infection cycle. It has also emerged as a potential drug target. In this review, the current status of the research of NCoV2 is described in terms of molecular structure and dynamics. NCoV2 consists of two domains, i.e., the N-terminal domain (NTD) and the C-terminal domain (CTD) with a disordered region between them. Recent simulation studies have identified several potential drugs that can bind to NTD or CTD with high affinity. Moreover, it was shown that the degree of flexibility in the disordered region has a large effect on drug binding rate, suggesting the importance of molecular flexibility for the NCoV2 function. Molecular flexibility has also been shown to be integral to the formation of droplets, where NCoV2, RNA and/or other viral proteins gather through liquid-liquid phase separation and considered important for viral replication. Finally, as one of the future research directions, a strategy for obtaining the structural and dynamical information on the proteins contained in droplets is presented.

VP39 of Spodoptera litura multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus cannot efficiently rescue the nucleocapsid assembly of vp39-null Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus

Background

Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) vp39 is conserved in all sequenced baculovirus genomes. In previous studies, VP39 has been identified as the major capsid structure protein of baculoviruses and found to be essential for nucleocapsid assembly. The nucleocapsid composition and structure of Group I and II NPVs of the Alphabaculovirus genus are very similar. It is not clear whether the major capsid structure protein VP39 of Group I NPVs is functionally identical to or substitutable with the Group II NPV VP39. In this study, the function of Group II Spodoptera litura MNPV (SpltMNPV) VP39 in Group I AcMNPV was characterized.

Methods

Sequence alignment of AcMNPV VP39 and SpltMNPV VP39 was performed using Clustal X and edited with GeneDoc. To determine whether VP39 of Group I NPVs can be functionally substituted by Group II NPV VP39, a vp39-null AcMNPV (vAcvp39KO) and a vp39-pseudotyped AcMNPV (vAcSpltvp39:FLAG), in which the Group I AcMNPV vp39 coding sequence was replaced with that of SpltMNPV from Group II NPVs, were constructed via homologous recombination in Escherichia coli. Using an anti-FLAG monoclonal antibody, immunoblot analysis was performed to examine SpltMNPV VP39 expression. Fluorescence and light microscopy were used to monitor viral replication and infection. Viral growth curve analysis was performed using a fifty percent tissue culture infective dose (TCID₅₀) endpoint dilution assay. Viral morphogenesis was detected using an electron microscope.

Results

Sequence alignment indicated that the N-termini of AcMNPV VP39 and SpltMNPV VP39 are relatively conserved, whereas the C-terminus of SpltMNPV VP39 lacks the domain of amino acid residues 306–334 homologous to AcMNPV VP39. Immunoblot analysis showed that SpltMNPV VP39 was expressed in vAcSpltvp39:FLAG. Fluorescence and light microscopy showed that vAcSpltvp39:FLAG did not spread by infection. Viral growth curve analysis confirmed a defect in infectious budded virion production. Electron microscopy revealed that although masses of abnormally elongated empty capsid structures existed inside the nuclei of Sf9 cells transfected with vAcSpltvp39:FLAG, no nucleocapsids were observed.

Conclusion

Altogether, our results demonstrated that VP39 from SpltMNPV cannot efficiently substitute AcMNPV VP39 during nucleocapsid assembly in AcMNPV.

Identification of A functional region in Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus VP39 that is essential for nuclear actin polymerization

Nuclear actin polymerization plays an indispensable role in the nuclear assembly of baculovirus nucleocapsid, but the underlying viral infection-mediated mechanism remains unclear. VP39 is the major protein in baculovirus capsid, which builds the skeleton of the capsid tubular structure. VP39 is suggested in previous studies to interact with cellular actin and mediate actin polymerization. However, it is unclear about the role of VP39 in mediating nuclear actin polymerization. Results in this study indicated that vp39 deletion abolished nuclear actin polymerization, which was recovered after vp39 repair, revealing the essential part of VP39 in nuclear actin polymerization. Furthermore, a series of mutants with vp39 deletions were constructed to analyze the important region responsible for nuclear actin polymerization. In addition, intracellular localization analysis demonstrated that the amino acids 192-286 in VP39 C-terminal are responsible for nuclear actin polymerization.

Separation of influenza virus-like particles from baculovirus by polymer-grafted anion exchanger

The baculovirus expression vector system is a very powerful tool to produce virus‐like particles and gene‐therapy vectors, but the removal of coexpressed baculovirus has been a major barrier for wider industrial use. We used chimeric human immunodeficiency virus‐1 (HIV‐1) gag influenza‐hemagglutin virus‐like particles produced in Tnms42 insect cells using the baculovirus insect cell expression vector system as model virus‐like particles. A fast and simple purification method for these virus‐like particles with direct capture and purification within one chromatography step was developed. The insect cell culture supernatant was treated with endonuclease and filtered, before it was directly loaded onto a polymer‐grafted anion exchanger and eluted by a linear salt gradient. A 4.3 log clearance of baculovirus from virus‐like particles was achieved. The absence of the baculovirus capsid protein (vp39) in the product fraction was additionally shown by high performance liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry. When considering a vaccination dose of 10⁹ particles, 4200 doses can be purified per L pretreated supernatant, meeting the requirements for vaccines with <10 ng double‐stranded DNA per dose and 3.4 µg protein per dose in a single step. The process is simple with a very low number of handling steps and has the characteristics to become a platform for purification of these types of virus‐like particles.

Major capsid protein of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus contributes to the promoter activity of the very late viral genes

The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) is one of the most powerful eukaryotic expression systems. Recombinant protein expression is usually controlled by promoters of the baculovirus very late genes (i.e., polyhedrin and p10); therefore, identifying novel regulatory factors for these promoters is key to increasing BEVS productivity. Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) is the viral vector most frequently used in BEVS. VP39 is the major nucleocapsid protein of AcMNPV and plays a pivotal role in nucleocapsid assembly in the nucleus. In this study, we found that knocking out vp39 from the AcMNPV genome resulted in decreased protein abundance of polyhedrin and P10. Further assays revealed that the mRNA transcripts and the promoter activities of polyhedrin and p10 were decreased in the absence of vp39, suggesting that VP39 contributes to the activity of the very late viral gene promoters and may represent a means of optimizing the current BEVS.

Nucleocapsid Assembly of Baculoviruses

The baculovirus nucleocapsid is formed through a rod-like capsid encapsulating a genomic DNA molecule of 80~180 kbp. The viral capsid is a large oligomer composed of many copies of various protein subunits. The assembly of viral capsids is a complex oligomerization process. The timing of expression of nucleocapsid-related proteins, transport pathways, and their interactions can affect the assembly process of preformed capsids. In addition, the selection of viral DNA and the injection of the viral genome into empty capsids are the critical steps in nucleocapsid assembly. This paper reviews the replication and recombination of baculovirus DNA, expression and transport of capsid proteins, formation of preformed capsids, DNA encapsulation, and nucleocapsid formation. This review will provide a basis for further study of the nucleocapsid assembly mechanism of baculovirus.

Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus protein Bm11 is involved in occlusion body production and occlusion-derived virus embedding

Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) orf11 (bm11) is a highly conserved gene with unknown function. It is homologous to AcMNPV orf19. In this study, a bm11 knockout virus was constructed and its role was investigated. Expression analysis indicated that bm11 is a late gene and confocal microscopy analysis demonstrated that Bm11 localizes predominantly in the nuclear ring zone at the late phase of infection. The bm11 deletion did not affect budded virus (BV) production or viral genome replication, but markedly reduced the production of occlusion bodies (OBs) and the embedding of occlusion-derived viruses (ODVs). Bio-assays showed that Bm11 was involved in BmNPV infectivity in vivo by direct injection. In conclusion, our results demonstrated that although Bm11 is not essential for BV production or mature ODV formation, it affects OB production and ODV occlusion.

Baculovirus AC102 Is a Nucleocapsid Protein That Is Crucial for Nuclear Actin Polymerization and Nucleocapsid Morphogenesis

The baculovirus Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV), the type species of alphabaculoviruses, is an enveloped DNA virus that infects lepidopteran insects and is commonly known as a vector for protein expression and cell transduction. AcMNPV belongs to a diverse group of viral and bacterial pathogens that target the host cell actin cytoskeleton during infection. AcMNPV is unusual, however, in that it absolutely requires actin translocation into the nucleus early in infection and actin polymerization within the nucleus late in infection coincident with viral replication. Of the six viral factors that are sufficient, when coexpressed, to induce the nuclear localization of actin, only AC102 is essential for viral replication and the nuclear accumulation of actin. We therefore sought to better understand the role of AC102 in actin mobilization in the nucleus early and late in infection. Although AC102 was proposed to function early in infection, we found that AC102 is predominantly expressed as a late protein. In addition, we observed that AC102 is required for F-actin assembly in the nucleus during late infection, as well as for proper formation of viral replication structures and nucleocapsid morphogenesis. Finally, we found that AC102 is a nucleocapsid protein and a newly recognized member of a complex consisting of the viral proteins EC27, C42, and the actin polymerization protein P78/83. Taken together, our findings suggest that AC102 is necessary for nucleocapsid morphogenesis and actin assembly during late infection through its role as a component of the P78/83-C42-EC27-AC102 protein complex.IMPORTANCE The baculovirus Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) is an important biotechnological tool for protein expression and cell transduction, and related nucleopolyhedroviruses are also used as environmentally benign insecticides. One impact of our work is to better understand the fundamental mechanisms through which AcMNPV exploits the cellular machinery of the host for replication, which may aid in the development of improved baculovirus-based research and industrial tools. Moreover, AcMNPV's ability to mobilize the host actin cytoskeleton within the cell's nucleus during infection makes it a powerful cell biological tool. It is becoming increasingly clear that actin plays important roles in the cell's nucleus, and yet the regulation and function of nuclear actin is poorly understood. Our work to better understand how AcMNPV relocalizes and polymerizes actin within the nucleus may reveal fundamental mechanisms that govern nuclear actin regulation and function, even in the absence of viral infection.

Autographa californica Nucleopolyhedrovirus AC141 (Exon0), a Potential E3 Ubiquitin Ligase, Interacts with Viral Ubiquitin and AC66 To Facilitate Nucleocapsid Egress

During the infection cycle of Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV), two forms of virions are produced, budded virus (BV) and occlusion-derived virus (ODV). Nucleocapsids that form BV have to egress from the nucleus, whereas nucleocapsids that form ODV remain inside the nucleus. The molecular mechanism that determines whether nucleocapsids remain inside or egress from the nucleus is unknown. AC141 (a predicted E3 ubiquitin ligase) and viral ubiquitin (vUbi) have both been shown to be required for efficient BV production. In this study, it was hypothesized that vUbi interacts with AC141, and in addition, that this interaction was required for BV production. Deletion of both ac141 and vubi restricted viral infection to a single cell, and BV production was completely eliminated. AC141 was ubiquitinated by either vUbi or cellular Ubi, and this interaction was required for optimal BV production. Nucleocapsids in BV, but not ODV, were shown to be specifically ubiquitinated by vUbi, including a 100-kDa protein, as well as high-molecular-weight conjugates. The viral ubiquitinated 100-kDa BV-specific nucleocapsid protein was identified as AC66, which is known to be required for BV production and was shown by coimmunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry to interact with AC141. Confocal microscopy also showed that AC141, AC66, and vUbi interact at the nuclear periphery. These results suggest that ubiquitination of nucleocapsid proteins by vUbi functions as a signal to determine if a nucleocapsid will egress from the nucleus and form BV or remain in the nucleus to form ODV.IMPORTANCE Baculoviruses produce two types of virions called occlusion-derived virus (ODV) and budded virus (BV). ODVs are required for oral infection, whereas BV enables the systemic spread of virus to all host tissues, which is critical for killing insects. One of the important steps for BV production is the export of nucleocapsids out of the nucleus. This study investigated the molecular mechanisms that enable the selection of nucleocapsids for nuclear export instead of being retained within the nucleus, where they would become ODV. Our data show that ubiquitination, a universal cellular process, specifically tags nucleocapsids of BV, but not those found in ODV, using a virus-encoded ubiquitin (vUbi). Therefore, ubiquitination may be the molecular signal that determines if a nucleocapsid is destined to form a BV, thus ensuring lethal infection of the host.