1
|
Giraud G, El Achi K, Zoulim F, Testoni B. Co-Transcriptional Regulation of HBV Replication: RNA Quality Also Matters. Viruses 2024; 16:615. [PMID: 38675956 PMCID: PMC11053573 DOI: 10.3390/v16040615] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2024] [Revised: 04/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) virus infection is a major public health burden and the leading cause of hepatocellular carcinoma. Despite the efficacy of current treatments, hepatitis B virus (HBV) cannot be fully eradicated due to the persistence of its minichromosome, or covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA). The HBV community is investing large human and financial resources to develop new therapeutic strategies that either silence or ideally degrade cccDNA, to cure HBV completely or functionally. cccDNA transcription is considered to be the key step for HBV replication. Transcription not only influences the levels of viral RNA produced, but also directly impacts their quality, generating multiple variants. Growing evidence advocates for the role of the co-transcriptional regulation of HBV RNAs during CHB and viral replication, paving the way for the development of novel therapies targeting these processes. This review focuses on the mechanisms controlling the different co-transcriptional processes that HBV RNAs undergo, and their contribution to both viral replication and HBV-induced liver pathogenesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Guillaume Giraud
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR5286, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France (F.Z.)
- The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, 69003 Lyon, France
| | - Khadija El Achi
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR5286, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France (F.Z.)
| | - Fabien Zoulim
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR5286, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France (F.Z.)
- The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, 69003 Lyon, France
- Hospices Civils de Lyon, Hôpital Croix Rousse, Service d’Hépato-Gastroentérologie, 69004 Lyon, France
| | - Barbara Testoni
- INSERM U1052, CNRS UMR5286, Centre de Recherche en Cancérologie de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69008 Lyon, France (F.Z.)
- The Lyon Hepatology Institute EVEREST, 69003 Lyon, France
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Ming T, Yuting L, Meiling D, Shengtao C, Jihua R, Hui Z, Wanjin C, Dian L, Tingting G, Juan C, Zhenzhen Z. Chromatin binding protein HMGN1 promotes HBV cccDNA transcription and replication by regulating the phosphorylation of histone 3. Antiviral Res 2024; 221:105796. [PMID: 38181856 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2024.105796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 01/07/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Direct elimination of cccDNA remains a formidable obstacle due to the persistent and stable presence of cccDNA in hepatocyte nuclei. The silencing of cccDNA transcription enduringly is one of alternative strategies in the treatment of hepatitis B. Protein binding to cccDNA plays an important role in its transcriptional regulation; thus, the identification of key factors involved in this process is of great importance. APPROACHES AND RESULTS In the present study, high mobility group nucleosome binding domain 1 (HMGN1) was screened out based on our biotin-avidin enrichment system. First, chromatin immunoprecipitation and fluorescent in situ hybridization assays confirmed the binding of HMGN1 with cccDNA in the nucleus. Second, functional experiments in HBV-infected cells showed that the promoting effect of HMGN1 on HBV transcription and replication depended on the functional region of the nucleosomal binding domain, while transfection of the HMGN1 mutant showed no influence on HBV compared with the vector. Third, further mechanistic exploration revealed that the silencing of HMGN1 increased the level of phosphorylase CLK2 and promoted H3 phosphorylation causing the reduced accessibility of cccDNA. Moreover, silenced HMGN1 was mimicked in HBV (r) cccDNA mouse model of HBV infection in vivo. The results showed that silencing HMGN1 inhibited HBV replication in vivo. CONCLUSIONS In summary, our study identified that a host protein can bind to cccDNA and promote its transcription, providing a candidate strategy for anti-HBV targeting to interfere with the transcriptional activity of cccDNA microchromosomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tan Ming
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Child Infection and Immunity, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Department of Infectious Diseases, The Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing Medical University Chongqing, China; The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Liu Yuting
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Dong Meiling
- Department of Clinical Laboratory, Infectious Diseases Hospital of Nanchang University, Nanchang, China
| | - Cheng Shengtao
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Ren Jihua
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zhang Hui
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chen Wanjin
- Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medical Diagnostics, Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Li Dian
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Gao Tingting
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chen Juan
- The Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Infectious Diseases Designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China; Key Laboratory of Laboratory Medical Diagnostics, Chinese Ministry of Education, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.
| | - Zhang Zhenzhen
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Child Infection and Immunity, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health and Disorders, Department of Infectious Diseases, The Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing Medical University Chongqing, China.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Xia Y, Cheng X, Nilsson T, Zhang M, Zhao G, Inuzuka T, Teng Y, Li Y, Anderson DE, Holdorf M, Liang TJ. Nucleolin binds to and regulates transcription of hepatitis B virus covalently closed circular DNA minichromosome. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2306390120. [PMID: 38015841 PMCID: PMC10710063 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2306390120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains a major public health threat with nearly 300 million people chronically infected worldwide who are at a high risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma. Current therapies are effective in suppressing HBV replication but rarely lead to cure. Current therapies do not affect the HBV covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), which serves as the template for viral transcription and replication and is highly stable in infected cells to ensure viral persistence. In this study, we aim to identify and elucidate the functional role of cccDNA-associated host factors using affinity purification and protein mass spectrometry in HBV-infected cells. Nucleolin was identified as a key cccDNA-binding protein and shown to play an important role in HBV cccDNA transcription, likely via epigenetic regulation. Targeting nucleolin to silence cccDNA transcription in infected hepatocytes may be a promising therapeutic strategy for a functional cure of HBV.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yuchen Xia
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
- State Key Laboratory of Virology and Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Allergy and Immunology, Institute of Medical Virology, TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, TaiKang Medical School, Wuhan University, Wuhan430071, China
| | - Xiaoming Cheng
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
- State Key Laboratory of Virology and Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Allergy and Immunology, Institute of Medical Virology, TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, TaiKang Medical School, Wuhan University, Wuhan430071, China
| | - Tobias Nilsson
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Emeryville, CA94608
| | - Min Zhang
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Gaihong Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Virology and Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Allergy and Immunology, Institute of Medical Virology, TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, TaiKang Medical School, Wuhan University, Wuhan430071, China
| | - Tadashi Inuzuka
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Yan Teng
- State Key Laboratory of Virology and Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Allergy and Immunology, Institute of Medical Virology, TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, TaiKang Medical School, Wuhan University, Wuhan430071, China
| | - Yao Li
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - D. Eric Anderson
- Advanced Mass Spectrometry Core, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| | - Meghan Holdorf
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Emeryville, CA94608
| | - T. Jake Liang
- Liver Diseases Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD20892
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Salama II, Sami SM, Salama SI, Abdel-Latif GA, Shaaban FA, Fouad WA, Abdelmohsen AM, Raslan HM. Current and novel modalities for management of chronic hepatitis B infection. World J Hepatol 2023; 15:585-608. [PMID: 37305370 PMCID: PMC10251278 DOI: 10.4254/wjh.v15.i5.585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2022] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Over 296 million people are estimated to have chronic hepatitis B viral infection (CHB), and it poses unique challenges for elimination. CHB is the result of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-specific immune tolerance and the presence of covalently closed circular DNA as mini chromosome inside the nucleus and the integrated HBV. Serum hepatitis B core-related antigen is the best surrogate marker for intrahepatic covalently closed circular DNA. Functional HBV “cure” is the durable loss of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg), with or without HBsAg seroconversion and undetectable serum HBV DNA after completing a course of treatment. The currently approved therapies are nucleos(t)ide analogues, interferon-alpha, and pegylated-interferon. With these therapies, functional cure can be achieved in < 10% of CHB patients. Any variation to HBV or the host immune system that disrupts the interaction between them can lead to reactivation of HBV. Novel therapies may allow efficient control of CHB. They include direct acting antivirals and immunomodulators. Reduction of the viral antigen load is a crucial factor for success of immune-based therapies. Immunomodulatory therapy may lead to modulation of the host immune system. It may enhance/restore innate immunity against HBV (as toll-like-receptors and cytosolic retinoic acid inducible gene I agonist). Others may induce adaptive immunity as checkpoint inhibitors, therapeutic HBV vaccines including protein (HBsAg/preS and hepatitis B core antigen), monoclonal or bispecific antibodies and genetically engineered T cells to generate chimeric antigen receptor-T or T-cell receptor-T cells and HBV-specific T cells to restore T cell function to efficiently clear HBV. Combined therapy may successfully overcome immune tolerance and lead to HBV control and cure. Immunotherapeutic approaches carry the risk of overshooting immune responses causing uncontrolled liver damage. The safety of any new curative therapies should be measured in relation to the excellent safety of currently approved nucleos(t)ide analogues. Development of novel antiviral and immune modulatory therapies should be associated with new diagnostic assays used to evaluate the effectiveness or to predict response.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Iman Ibrahim Salama
- Department of Community Medicine Research, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Samia M Sami
- Department of Child Health, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Somaia I Salama
- Department of Community Medicine Research, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Ghada A Abdel-Latif
- Department of Community Medicine Research, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Fatma A Shaaban
- Department of Child Health, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Walaa A Fouad
- Department of Community Medicine Research, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Aida M Abdelmohsen
- Department of Community Medicine Research, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| | - Hala M Raslan
- Department of Internal Medicine, National Research Centre, Giza 12411, Dokki, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Yu X, Long Q, Shen S, Liu Z, Chandran J, Zhang J, Ding H, Zhang H, Cai D, Kim ES, Huang Y, Guo H. Screening of an epigenetic compound library identifies BRD4 as a potential antiviral target for hepatitis B virus covalently closed circular DNA transcription. Antiviral Res 2023; 211:105552. [PMID: 36737008 PMCID: PMC10036215 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2023.105552] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
HBV cccDNA is the persistent form of viral genome, which exists in host cell nucleus as an episomal minichromosome decorated with histone and non-histone proteins. cccDNA is the authentic viral transcription template and resistant to current antivirals. Growing evidence shows that the transcriptional activity of cccDNA minichromosome undergoes epigenetic regulations, suggesting a new perspective for anti-cccDNA drug development through targeting histone modifications. In this study, we screened an epigenetic compound library in the cccDNA reporter cell line HepBHAe82, which produces the HA-tagged HBeAg in a cccDNA-dependent manner. Among the obtained hits, a bromodomain-containing protein 4 (BRD4) inhibitor MS436 exhibited marked inhibition of cccDNA transcription in both HBV stable cell line HepAD38 and HepG2-NTCP or primary human hepatocyte infection system under noncytotoxic concentrations. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay demonstrated that MS436 dramatically reduced the enrichment of H3K27ac, an activating histone modification pattern, on cccDNA minichromosome. RNAseq differential analysis showed that MS436 does not drastically change host transcriptome or induce any known anti-HBV factors/pathways, indicating a direct antiviral effect of MS436 on cccDNA minichromosome. Interestingly, the MS436-mediated inhibition of cccDNA transcription is accompanied by cccDNA destabilization in HBV infection and a recombinant cccDNA system, indicating that BRD4 activity may also play a role in cccDNA maintenance. Furthermore, depletion of BRD4 by siRNA knockdown or PROTAC degrader resulted in cccDNA inhibition in HBV-infected HepG2-NTCP cells, further validating BRD4 as an antiviral target. Taken together, our study has demonstrated the practicability of HepBHAe82-based anti-HBV drug screening system and provided a proof-of-concept for targeting HBV cccDNA with epigenetic compounds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyang Yu
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Quanxin Long
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Sheng Shen
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Zhentao Liu
- Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Jithin Chandran
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Junjie Zhang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Hao Ding
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Hu Zhang
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Dawei Cai
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Elena S Kim
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA
| | - Yufei Huang
- Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Haitao Guo
- Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Cancer Virology Program, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA.
| |
Collapse
|