scholarly journals Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Capsid Protein Forms a Tetrameric Complex with CRM1 and Importin α/β That Obstructs Nuclear Pore Complex Function

2010 ◽  
Vol 84 (9) ◽  
pp. 4158-4171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Svetlana Atasheva ◽  
Alexander Fish ◽  
Maarten Fornerod ◽  
Elena I. Frolova
Keyword(s):  
Capsid Protein ◽  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Nuclear Export ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis ◽  
Equine Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Inhibitory Function ◽  
Importin Α ◽  
Tetrameric Complex

ABSTRACT Development of the cellular antiviral response requires nuclear translocation of multiple transcription factors and activation of a wide variety of cellular genes. To counteract the antiviral response, several viruses have developed an efficient means of inhibiting nucleocytoplasmic traffic. In this study, we demonstrate that the pathogenic strain of Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) has developed a unique mechanism of nuclear import inhibition. Its capsid protein forms a tetrameric complex with the nuclear export receptor CRM1 and the nuclear import receptor importin α/β. This unusual complex accumulates in the center channel of the nuclear pores and blocks nuclear import mediated by different karyopherins. The inhibitory function of VEEV capsid protein is determined by a short 39-amino-acid-long peptide that contains both nuclear import and supraphysiological nuclear export signals. Mutations in these signals or in the linker peptide attenuate or completely abolish capsid-specific inhibition of nuclear traffic. The less pathogenic VEEV strains contain a wide variety of mutations in this peptide that affect its inhibitory function in nuclear import. Thus, these mutations appear to be the determinants of this attenuated phenotype. This novel mechanism of inhibiting nuclear transport also shows that the nuclear pore complex is vulnerable to unusual cargo receptor complexes and sheds light on the importance of finely adjusted karyopherin-nucleoporin interactions for efficient cargo translocation.

scholarly journals Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Capsid Protein Inhibits Nuclear Import in Mammalian but Not in Mosquito Cells

2008 ◽  
Vol 82 (8) ◽  
pp. 4028-4041 ◽  
Author(s):  
Svetlana Atasheva ◽  
Natalia Garmashova ◽  
Ilya Frolov ◽  
Elena Frolova
Keyword(s):  
Capsid Protein ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
The United States ◽  
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis ◽  
Equine Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Small Proteins ◽  
Mosquito Cells

ABSTRACT Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) represents a continuous public health threat in the United States. It has the ability to cause fatal disease in humans and in horses and other domestic animals. We recently demonstrated that replicating VEEV interferes with cellular transcription and uses this phenomenon as a means of downregulating a cellular antiviral response. VEEV capsid protein was found to play a critical role in this process, and its ∼35-amino-acid-long peptide, fused with green fluorescent protein, functioned as efficiently as did the entire capsid. We detected a significant fraction of VEEV capsid associated with nuclear envelope, which suggested that this protein might regulate nucleocytoplasmic trafficking. In this study, we demonstrate that VEEV capsid and its N-terminal sequence efficiently inhibit multiple receptor-mediated nuclear import pathways but have no effect on the passive diffusion of small proteins. The capsid protein of the Old World alphavirus Sindbis virus and the VEEV capsid, with a previously defined frameshift mutation, were found to have no detectable effect on nuclear import. Importantly, the VEEV capsid did not noticeably interfere with nuclear import in mosquito cells, and this might play a critical role in the ability of the virus to develop a persistent, life-long infection in mosquito vectors. These findings demonstrate a new aspect of VEEV-host cell interactions, and the results of this study are likely applicable to other New World alphaviruses, such as eastern and western equine encephalitis viruses.

scholarly journals The cytoplasmic filaments of the nuclear pore complex are dispensable for selective nuclear protein import

2002 ◽  
Vol 158 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-77 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias C. Walther ◽  
Helen S. Pickersgill ◽  
Volker C. Cordes ◽  
Martin W. Goldberg ◽  
Terry D. Allen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Protein Import ◽  
Nuclear Localization Sequence ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Slight Reduction ◽  
Cytoplasmic Filaments ◽  
Localization Sequence ◽  
Importin Α

The nuclear pore complex (NPC) mediates bidirectional macromolecular traffic between the nucleus and cytoplasm in eukaryotic cells. Eight filaments project from the NPC into the cytoplasm and are proposed to function in nuclear import. We investigated the localization and function of two nucleoporins on the cytoplasmic face of the NPC, CAN/Nup214 and RanBP2/Nup358. Consistent with previous data, RanBP2 was localized at the cytoplasmic filaments. In contrast, CAN was localized near the cytoplasmic coaxial ring. Unexpectedly, extensive blocking of RanBP2 with gold-conjugated antibodies failed to inhibit nuclear import. Therefore, RanBP2-deficient NPCs were generated by in vitro nuclear assembly in RanBP2-depleted Xenopus egg extracts. NPCs were formed that lacked cytoplasmic filaments, but that retained CAN. These nuclei efficiently imported nuclear localization sequence (NLS) or M9 substrates. NPCs lacking CAN retained RanBP2 and cytoplasmic filaments, and showed a minor NLS import defect. NPCs deficient in both CAN and RanBP2 displayed no cytoplasmic filaments and had a strikingly immature cytoplasmic appearance. However, they showed only a slight reduction in NLS-mediated import, no change in M9-mediated import, and were normal in growth and DNA replication. We conclude that RanBP2 is the major nucleoporin component of the cytoplasmic filaments of the NPC, and that these filaments do not have an essential role in importin α/β– or transportin-dependent import.

Nucleocytoplasmic Shuttling of Porcine Parvovirus NS1 Protein Mediated by the CRM1 Nuclear Export Pathway and the Importin α/β Nuclear Import Pathway

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liyan Cao ◽  
Fang Fu ◽  
Jianfei Chen ◽  
Hongyan Shi ◽  
Xin Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Nuclear Export ◽  
Nonstructural Protein ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Porcine Parvovirus ◽  
Ns1 Protein ◽  
Nucleocytoplasmic Shuttling ◽  
Export Pathway ◽  
Importin Α

Porcine parvovirus (PPV) NS1, the major nonstructural protein of this virus, plays an important role in PPV replication. We show, for the first time, that NS1 dynamically shuttles between the nucleus and cytoplasm, although its subcellular localization is predominantly nuclear. NS1 contains two nuclear export signals (NESs) at amino acids 283–291 (designated NES2) and 602–608 (designated NES1). NES1 and NES2 are both functional and transferable NESs, and their nuclear export activity is blocked by leptomycin B (LMB), suggesting that the export of NS1 from the nucleus is dependent upon the chromosome region maintenance 1 (CRM1) pathway. Deletion and site-directed mutational analyses showed that NS1 contains a bipartite nuclear localization signal (NLS) at amino acids 256–274. Coimmunoprecipitation assays showed that NS1 interacts with importins α5 and α7 through its NLS. The overexpression of CRM1, importins α5 and α7 significantly promoted PPV replication, whereas the inhibition of CRM1 and importin α/β-mediated transport by specific inhibitors (LMB, importazole and ivermectin) clearly blocked PPV replication. The mutant viruses of delete NESs or NLS motif of the NS1 by using reverse genetics could not be rescued, suggesting that NESs and NLS are essential for PPV replication. Collectively, these findings suggest that NS1 shuttles between the nucleus and cytoplasm, mediated by its functional NESs and NLS, via the CRM1-dependent nuclear export pathway and the importin α/β-mediated nuclear import pathway, and PPV proliferation was inhibited if blocking NS1 nuclear import or export. Importance PPV replicates in the nucleus, and the nuclear envelope is a barrier to its entry into and egress from the nucleus. PPV NS1 is a nucleus-targeting protein that is important for viral DNA replication. Because the NS1 molecule is large (> 50 kDa), it cannot pass through the nuclear pore complex by diffusion alone, and requires specific transport receptors to permit its nucleocytoplasmic shuttling. In this study, the two functional NESs in the NS1 protein were identified, and its dependence on the CRM1 pathway for nuclear export demonstrated. The nuclear import of NS1 utilizes importins α5 and α7 in the importin α/β nuclear import pathway.

scholarly journals Importin β contains a COOH-terminal nucleoporin binding region important for nuclear transport

2003 ◽  
Vol 162 (3) ◽  
pp. 391-401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janna Bednenko ◽  
Gino Cingolani ◽  
Larry Gerace
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Binding Sites ◽  
Nuclear Transport ◽  
Terminal Region ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Binding Region ◽  
Similar Extent ◽  
Importin Α ◽  
Import Receptor

Proteins containing a classical NLS are transported into the nucleus by the import receptor importin β, which binds to cargoes via the adaptor importin α. The import complex is translocated through the nuclear pore complex by interactions of importin β with a series of nucleoporins. Previous studies have defined a nucleoporin binding region in the NH2-terminal half of importin β. Here we report the identification of a second nucleoporin binding region in its COOH-terminal half. Although the affinity of the COOH-terminal region for nucleoporins is dramatically weaker than that of the NH2-terminal region, sets of mutations that perturb the nucleoporin binding of either region reduce the nuclear import activity of importin β to a similar extent (∼50%). An importin β mutant with a combination of mutations in the NH2- and COOH-terminal regions is completely inactive for nuclear import. Thus, importin β possesses two nucleoporin binding sites, both of which are important for its nuclear import function.

scholarly journals Nuclear Import and Export of Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Nonstructural Protein 2

2007 ◽  
Vol 81 (19) ◽  
pp. 10268-10279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie A. Montgomery ◽  
Robert E. Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Localization ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Nuclear Export ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Nonstructural Protein ◽  
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis ◽  
Equine Encephalitis Virus ◽  
Nonstructural Protein 2

ABSTRACT Many RNA viruses, which replicate predominantly in the cytoplasm, have nuclear components that contribute to their life cycle or pathogenesis. We investigated the intracellular localization of the multifunctional nonstructural protein 2 (nsP2) in mammalian cells infected with Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEE), an important, naturally emerging zoonotic alphavirus. VEE nsP2 localizes to both the cytoplasm and the nucleus of mammalian cells in the context of infection and also when expressed alone. Through the analysis of a series of enhanced green fluorescent protein fusions, a segment of nsP2 that completely localizes to the nucleus of mammalian cells was identified. Within this region, mutation of the putative nuclear localization signal (NLS) PGKMV diminished, but did not obliterate, the ability of the protein to localize to the nucleus, suggesting that this sequence contributes to the nuclear localization of VEE nsP2. Furthermore, VEE nsP2 specifically interacted with the nuclear import protein karyopherin-α1 but not with karyopherin-α2, -3, or -4, suggesting that karyopherin-α1 transports nsP2 to the nucleus during infection. Additionally, a novel nuclear export signal (NES) was identified, which included residues L526 and L528 of VEE nsP2. Leptomycin B treatment resulted in nuclear accumulation of nsP2, demonstrating that nuclear export of nsP2 is mediated via the CRM1 nuclear export pathway. Disruption of either the NLS or the NES in nsP2 compromised essential viral functions. Taken together, these results establish the bidirectional transport of nsP2 across the nuclear membrane, suggesting that a critical function of nsP2 during infection involves its shuttling between the cytoplasm and the nucleus.

scholarly journals The nucleoporin ELYS regulates nuclear size by controlling NPC number and nuclear import capacity

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Predrag Jevtić ◽  
Andria C. Schibler ◽  
Gianluca Pegoraro ◽  
Tom Misteli ◽  
Daniel L. Levy
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Pore Complex ◽  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Nuclear Periphery ◽  
Nuclear Size ◽  
Nuclear Pore ◽  
Nuclear Lamin ◽  
Importin Α ◽  
Intracellular Organelles ◽  
High Throughput Imaging

ABSTRACTHow intracellular organelles acquire their characteristic sizes is a fundamental cell biological question. Given the stereotypical changes in nuclear size in cancer, it is particularly important to understand the mechanisms that control nuclear size in human cells. Here we use a high-throughput imaging RNAi screen to identify and mechanistically characterize ELYS, a nucleoporin required for postmitotic nuclear pore complex (NPC) assembly, as a determinant of nuclear size in mammalian cells. We show that ELYS knockdown results in small nuclei, the accumulation of cytoplasmic lamin aggregates, reduced nuclear lamin B2 localization, lower NPC density, and decreased nuclear import. Increasing nuclear import by importin α overexpression rescues nuclear size and lamin B2 import, while inhibiting importin α/β nuclear import decreases nuclear size. Conversely, ELYS overexpression leads to increased nuclear size, enrichment of nuclear lamin B2 staining at the nuclear periphery, and elevated NPC density and nuclear import. Consistent with these observations, knockdown or inhibition of exportin 1 increases nuclear size. In summary, we identify ELYS and NPC density as novel positive effectors of mammalian nuclear size and propose that nuclear size is controlled by nuclear import capacity.

scholarly journals Promotion of importin α–mediated nuclear import by the phosphorylation-dependent binding of cargo protein to 14-3-3

2005 ◽  
Vol 169 (3) ◽  
pp. 415-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Faul ◽  
Stefan Hüttelmaier ◽  
Jun Oh ◽  
Virginie Hachet ◽  
Robert H. Singer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Import ◽  
Nuclear Export ◽  
Protein Targeting ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Intracellular Protein ◽  
Regulatory Processes ◽  
Cargo Protein ◽  
Cargo Proteins ◽  
Importin Α ◽  
Localization Signal

14-3-3 proteins are phosphoserine/threonine-binding proteins that play important roles in many regulatory processes, including intracellular protein targeting. 14-3-3 proteins can anchor target proteins in the cytoplasm and in the nucleus or can mediate their nuclear export. So far, no role for 14-3-3 in mediating nuclear import has been described. There is also mounting evidence that nuclear import is regulated by the phosphorylation of cargo proteins, but the underlying mechanism remains elusive. Myopodin is a dual-compartment, actin-bundling protein that functions as a tumor suppressor in human bladder cancer. In muscle cells, myopodin redistributes between the nucleus and the cytoplasm in a differentiation-dependent and stress-induced fashion. We show that importin α binding and the subsequent nuclear import of myopodin are regulated by the serine/threonine phosphorylation-dependent binding of myopodin to 14-3-3. These results establish a novel paradigm for the promotion of nuclear import by 14-3-3 binding. They provide a molecular explanation for the phosphorylation-dependent nuclear import of nuclear localization signal-containing cargo proteins.

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