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Gupta MN, Uversky VN. Protein structure-function continuum model: Emerging nexuses between specificity, evolution, and structure. Protein Sci 2024; 33:e4968. [PMID: 38532700 DOI: 10.1002/pro.4968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2023] [Revised: 02/18/2024] [Accepted: 03/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
The rationale for replacing the old binary of structure-function with the trinity of structure, disorder, and function has gained considerable ground in recent years. A continuum model based on the expanded form of the existing paradigm can now subsume importance of both conformational flexibility and intrinsic disorder in protein function. The disorder is actually critical for understanding the protein-protein interactions in many regulatory processes, formation of membrane-less organelles, and our revised notions of specificity as amply illustrated by moonlighting proteins. While its importance in formation of amyloids and function of prions is often discussed, the roles of intrinsic disorder in infectious diseases and protein function under extreme conditions are also becoming clear. This review is an attempt to discuss how our current understanding of protein function, specificity, and evolution fit better with the continuum model. This integration of structure and disorder under a single model may bring greater clarity in our continuing quest for understanding proteins and molecular mechanisms of their functionality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Munishwar Nath Gupta
- Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi, India
| | - Vladimir N Uversky
- Department of Molecular Medicine and USF Health Byrd Alzheimer's Research Institute, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA
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Jablunovsky A, Jose J. The Dynamic Landscape of Capsid Proteins and Viral RNA Interactions in Flavivirus Genome Packaging and Virus Assembly. Pathogens 2024; 13:120. [PMID: 38392858 PMCID: PMC10893219 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens13020120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2024] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The Flavivirus genus of the Flaviviridae family of enveloped single-stranded RNA viruses encompasses more than 70 members, many of which cause significant disease in humans and livestock. Packaging and assembly of the flavivirus RNA genome is essential for the formation of virions, which requires intricate coordination of genomic RNA, viral structural, and nonstructural proteins in association with virus-induced, modified endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane structures. The capsid (C) protein, a small but versatile RNA-binding protein, and the positive single-stranded RNA genome are at the heart of the elusive flavivirus assembly process. The nucleocapsid core, consisting of the genomic RNA encapsidated by C proteins, buds through the ER membrane, which contains viral glycoproteins prM and E organized as trimeric spikes into the lumen, forming an immature virus. During the maturation process, which involves the low pH-mediated structural rearrangement of prM and E and furin cleavage of prM in the secretory pathway, the spiky immature virus with a partially ordered nucleocapsid core becomes a smooth, mature virus with no discernible nucleocapsid. This review focuses on the mechanisms of genome packaging and assembly by examining the structural and functional aspects of C protein and viral RNA. We review the current lexicon of critical C protein features and evaluate interactions between C and genomic RNA in the context of assembly and throughout the life cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastazia Jablunovsky
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA;
| | - Joyce Jose
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA;
- The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
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Boccaccio GL, Thomas MG, García CC. Membraneless Organelles and Condensates Orchestrate Innate Immunity Against Viruses. J Mol Biol 2023; 435:167976. [PMID: 36702393 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2023.167976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
The cellular defense against viruses involves the assembly of oligomers, granules and membraneless organelles (MLOs) that govern the activation of several arms of the innate immune response. Upon interaction with specific pathogen-derived ligands, a number of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) undergo phase-separation thus triggering downstream signaling pathways. Among other relevant condensates, inflammasomes, apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase-recruitment domain (ASC) specks, cyclic GMP-AMP synthase (cGAS) foci, protein kinase R (PKR) clusters, ribonuclease L-induced bodies (RLBs), stress granules (SGs), processing bodies (PBs) and promyelocytic leukemia protein nuclear bodies (PML NBs) play different roles in the immune response. In turn, viruses have evolved diverse strategies to evade the host defense. Viral DNA or RNA, as well as viral proteases or proteins carrying intrinsically disordered regions may interfere with condensate formation and function in multiple ways. In this review we discuss current and hypothetical mechanisms of viral escape that involve the disassembly, repurposing, or inactivation of membraneless condensates that govern innate immunity. We summarize emerging interconnections between these diverse condensates that ultimately determine the cellular outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graciela Lidia Boccaccio
- Laboratorio de Biología Celular del ARN, Instituto Leloir (FIL) and Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires (IIBBA) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Tecnológicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Departamento de Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular (FBMyC), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (FCEN), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - María Gabriela Thomas
- Laboratorio de Biología Celular del ARN, Instituto Leloir (FIL) and Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Buenos Aires (IIBBA) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Tecnológicas (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. https://www.twitter.com/_gabithomas
| | - Cybele Carina García
- Departamento de Química Biológica (QB), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (FCEN), and IQUIBICEN, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Tecnológicas (CONICET) and Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Ouyang X, Wang X, Li P, Huang Q, Zhou L, Li J, Gao L, Sun Q, Chai F, Guo S, Zhou Z, Liu X, Dai L, Cheng W, Ren H. Bacterial effector restricts liquid-liquid phase separation of ZPR1 to antagonize host UPR ER. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112700. [PMID: 37379216 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 04/29/2023] [Accepted: 06/09/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023] Open
Abstract
How pathogens manipulate host UPRER to mediate immune evasion is largely unknown. Here, we identify the host zinc finger protein ZPR1 as an interacting partner of the enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC) effector NleE using proximity-enabled protein crosslinking. We show that ZPR1 assembles via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) in vitro and regulates CHOP-mediated UPRER at the transcriptional level. Interestingly, in vitro studies show that the ZPR1 binding ability with K63-ubiquitin chains, which promotes LLPS of ZPR1, is disrupted by NleE. Further analyses indicate that EPEC restricts host UPRER pathways at the transcription level in a NleE-ZPR1 cascade-dependent manner. Together, our study reveals the mechanism by which EPEC interferes with CHOP-UPRER via regulating ZPR1 to help pathogens escape host defense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxiao Ouyang
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Xueyun Wang
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Pan Li
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Qin Huang
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Li Zhou
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Jingxiang Li
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Li Gao
- Department of General Practice and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatrics, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, and Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Qi Sun
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Fangni Chai
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Shupan Guo
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Zhihui Zhou
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Xin Liu
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Lunzhi Dai
- Department of General Practice and National Clinical Research Center for Geriatrics, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, and Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China
| | - Wei Cheng
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy, Sichuan University West China Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China
| | - Haiyan Ren
- Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China; Collaborative Innovation Center of Biotherapy, Sichuan University West China Hospital, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, China.
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Veilleux C, Eugenin EA. Mechanisms of Zika astrocyte infection and neuronal toxicity. NEUROIMMUNE PHARMACOLOGY AND THERAPEUTICS 2023; 2:5-18. [PMID: 37027343 PMCID: PMC10070016 DOI: 10.1515/nipt-2022-0014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/02/2022] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
Objectives Zika virus (ZIKV) has become an epidemic in several countries and was declared a major public health issue by the WHO. Although ZIKV infection is asymptomatic or shows mild fever-related symptoms in most people, the virus can be transmitted from a pregnant mother to the fetus, resulting in severe brain developmental abnormalities, including microcephaly. Multiple groups have identified developmental neuronal and neuronal progenitor compromise during ZIKV infection within the fetal brain, but little is known about whether ZIKV could infect human astrocytes and its effect on the developing brain. Thus, our objective was to determine astrocyte ZiKV infection in a developmental-dependent manner. Methods We analyze infection of pure cultures of astrocytes and mixed cultures of neurons and astrocytes in response to ZIKV using plaque assays, confocal, and electron microscopy to identify infectivity, ZIKV accumulation and intracellular distribution as well as apoptosis and interorganelle dysfunction. Results Here, we demonstrated that ZIKV enters, infects, replicates, and accumulates in large quantities in human fetal astrocytes in a developmental-dependent manner. Astrocyte infection and intracellular viral accumulation resulted in neuronal apoptosis, and we propose astrocytes are a ZIKV reservoir during brain development. Conclusions Our data identify astrocytes in different stages of development as major contributors to the devastating effects of ZIKV in the developing brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Courtney Veilleux
- Public Health Research Institute (PHRI), New York, USA
- Deparment of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA
| | - Eliseo A. Eugenin
- Public Health Research Institute (PHRI), New York, USA
- Deparment of Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers the State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), Galveston, TX, USA
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Liaisons dangereuses: Intrinsic Disorder in Cellular Proteins Recruited to Viral Infection-Related Biocondensates. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24032151. [PMID: 36768473 PMCID: PMC9917183 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24032151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) is responsible for the formation of so-called membrane-less organelles (MLOs) that are essential for the spatio-temporal organization of the cell. Intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs) or regions (IDRs), either alone or in conjunction with nucleic acids, are involved in the formation of these intracellular condensates. Notably, viruses exploit LLPS at their own benefit to form viral replication compartments. Beyond giving rise to biomolecular condensates, viral proteins are also known to partition into cellular MLOs, thus raising the question as to whether these cellular phase-separating proteins are drivers of LLPS or behave as clients/regulators. Here, we focus on a set of eukaryotic proteins that are either sequestered in viral factories or colocalize with viral proteins within cellular MLOs, with the primary goal of gathering organized, predicted, and experimental information on these proteins, which constitute promising targets for innovative antiviral strategies. Using various computational approaches, we thoroughly investigated their disorder content and inherent propensity to undergo LLPS, along with their biological functions and interactivity networks. Results show that these proteins are on average, though to varying degrees, enriched in disorder, with their propensity for phase separation being correlated, as expected, with their disorder content. A trend, which awaits further validation, tends to emerge whereby the most disordered proteins serve as drivers, while more ordered cellular proteins tend instead to be clients of viral factories. In light of their high disorder content and their annotated LLPS behavior, most proteins in our data set are drivers or co-drivers of molecular condensation, foreshadowing a key role of these cellular proteins in the scaffolding of viral infection-related MLOs.
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Biological soft matter: intrinsically disordered proteins in liquid-liquid phase separation and biomolecular condensates. Essays Biochem 2022; 66:831-847. [PMID: 36350034 DOI: 10.1042/ebc20220052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2022] [Revised: 10/24/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The facts that many proteins with crucial biological functions do not have unique structures and that many biological processes are compartmentalized into the liquid-like biomolecular condensates, which are formed via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) and are not surrounded by the membrane, are revolutionizing the modern biology. These phenomena are interlinked, as the presence of intrinsic disorder represents an important requirement for a protein to undergo LLPS that drives biogenesis of numerous membrane-less organelles (MLOs). Therefore, one can consider these phenomena as crucial constituents of a new IDP-LLPS-MLO field. Furthermore, intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs), LLPS, and MLOs represent a clear link between molecular and cellular biology and soft matter and condensed soft matter physics. Both IDP and LLPS/MLO fields are undergoing explosive development and generate the ever-increasing mountain of crucial data. These new data provide answers to so many long-standing questions that it is difficult to imagine that in the very recent past, protein scientists and cellular biologists operated without taking these revolutionary concepts into account. The goal of this essay is not to deliver a comprehensive review of the IDP-LLPS-MLO field but to provide a brief and rather subjective outline of some of the recent developments in these exciting fields.
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Rahman SK, Ampah KK, Roy P. Role of NS2 specific RNA binding and phosphorylation in liquid-liquid phase separation and virus assembly. Nucleic Acids Res 2022; 50:11273-11284. [PMID: 36259663 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkac904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2022] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) has assumed a prominent role in biological cell systems, where it underpins the formation of subcellular compartments necessary for cell function. We investigated the underlying mechanism of LLPS in virus infected cells, where virus inclusion bodies are formed by an RNA-binding phosphoprotein (NS2) of Bluetongue virus to serve as sites for subviral particle assembly and virus maturation. We show that NS2 undergoes LLPS that is dependent on protein phosphorylation and RNA-binding and that LLPS occurrence is accompanied by a change in protein secondary structure. Site-directed mutagenesis identified two critical arginine residues in NS2 responsible for specific RNA binding and thus for NS2-RNA complex driven LLPS. Reverse genetics identified the same residues as essential for VIB assembly in infected cells and virus viability. Our findings suggest that a specific arginine-RNA interaction in the context of a phosphorylated state drives LLPS in this, and possibly other, virus infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shah Kamranur Rahman
- Department of Infection Biology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London WC1E 7HT UK
| | - Khamal Kwesi Ampah
- Department of Infection Biology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London WC1E 7HT UK
| | - Polly Roy
- Department of Infection Biology, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London WC1E 7HT UK
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Loh D, Reiter RJ. Melatonin: Regulation of Viral Phase Separation and Epitranscriptomics in Post-Acute Sequelae of COVID-19. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:8122. [PMID: 35897696 PMCID: PMC9368024 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23158122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The relentless, protracted evolution of the SARS-CoV-2 virus imposes tremendous pressure on herd immunity and demands versatile adaptations by the human host genome to counter transcriptomic and epitranscriptomic alterations associated with a wide range of short- and long-term manifestations during acute infection and post-acute recovery, respectively. To promote viral replication during active infection and viral persistence, the SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein regulates host cell microenvironment including pH and ion concentrations to maintain a high oxidative environment that supports template switching, causing extensive mitochondrial damage and activation of pro-inflammatory cytokine signaling cascades. Oxidative stress and mitochondrial distress induce dynamic changes to both the host and viral RNA m6A methylome, and can trigger the derepression of long interspersed nuclear element 1 (LINE1), resulting in global hypomethylation, epigenetic changes, and genomic instability. The timely application of melatonin during early infection enhances host innate antiviral immune responses by preventing the formation of "viral factories" by nucleocapsid liquid-liquid phase separation that effectively blockades viral genome transcription and packaging, the disassembly of stress granules, and the sequestration of DEAD-box RNA helicases, including DDX3X, vital to immune signaling. Melatonin prevents membrane depolarization and protects cristae morphology to suppress glycolysis via antioxidant-dependent and -independent mechanisms. By restraining the derepression of LINE1 via multifaceted strategies, and maintaining the balance in m6A RNA modifications, melatonin could be the quintessential ancient molecule that significantly influences the outcome of the constant struggle between virus and host to gain transcriptomic and epitranscriptomic dominance over the host genome during acute infection and PASC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doris Loh
- Independent Researcher, Marble Falls, TX 78654, USA;
| | - Russel J. Reiter
- Department of Cell Systems and Anatomy, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
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Aguilar G, Pagano N, Manuelidis L. Reduced Expression of Prion Protein With Increased Interferon-β Fail to Limit Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Agent Replication in Differentiating Neuronal Cells. Front Physiol 2022; 13:837662. [PMID: 35250638 PMCID: PMC8895124 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.837662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Immortalized uninfected septal (SEP) neurons proliferate but after physiological mitotic arrest they express differentiated neuronal characteristics including enhanced cell-to-cell membrane contacts and ≥ 8 fold increases in host prion protein (PrP). We compared proliferating uninfected and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD) agent infected cells with their arrested counterparts over 33 days by quantitative mRNA and protein blot analyses. Surprisingly, uninfected arrested cells increased interferon-β (IFN-β) mRNA by 2.5–8 fold; IFN-β mRNA elevations were not previously associated with neuronal differentiation. SEP cells with high CJD infectivity titers produced a much larger 40–68-fold increase in IFN-β mRNA, a classic host anti-viral response that is virucidal for RNA but not DNA viruses. High titers of CJD agent also induced dramatic decreases in host PrP, a protein needed for productive agent replication. Uninfected arrested cells produced large sustained 20–30-fold increases in PrP mRNA and protein, whereas CJD arrested cells showed only transient small 5-fold increases in PrP. A > 10-fold increase in infectivity, but not PrP misfolding, induced host PrP reductions that can limit CJD agent replication. In contrast to neuronal lineage cells, functionally distinct migratory microglia with high titers of CJD agent do not induce an IFN-β mRNA response. Because they have 1/50th of PrP of an average brain cell, microglia would be unable to produce the many new infectious particles needed to induce a large IFN-β response by host cells. Instead, microglia and related cells can be persistent reservoirs of infection and spread. Phase separations of agent-associated molecules in neurons, microglia and other cell types can yield new insights into the molecular structure, persistent, and evasive behavior of CJD-type agents.
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