scholarly journals Hepatitis Delta Virus Minimal Substrates Competent for Editing by ADAR1 and ADAR2

2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (18) ◽  
pp. 8547-8555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shuji Sato ◽  
Swee Kee Wong ◽  
David W. Lazinski

ABSTRACT A host-mediated RNA-editing event allows hepatitis delta virus (HDV) to express two essential proteins, the small delta antigen (HDAg-S) and the large delta antigen (HDAg-L), from a single open reading frame. One or several members of the ADAR (adenosine deaminases that act on RNA) family are thought to convert the adenosine to an inosine (I) within the HDAg-S amber codon in antigenomic RNA. As a consequence of replication, the UIG codon is converted to a UGG (tryptophan [W]) codon in the resulting HDAg-L message. Here, we used a novel reporter system to monitor the editing of the HDV amber/W site in the absence of replication. In cultured cells, we observed that both human ADAR1 (hADAR1) and hADAR2 were capable of editing the amber/W site with comparable efficiencies. We also defined the minimal HDV substrate required for hADAR1- and hADAR2-mediated editing. Only 24 nucleotides from the amber/W site were sufficient to enable efficient editing by hADAR1. Hence, the HDV amber/W site represents the smallest ADAR substrate yet identified. In contrast, the minimal substrate competent for hADAR2-mediated editing contained 66 nucleotides.

1998 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1919-1926 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew G. Polson ◽  
Herbert L. Ley ◽  
Brenda L. Bass ◽  
John L. Casey

ABSTRACT RNA editing at adenosine 1012 (amber/W site) in the antigenomic RNA of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) allows two essential forms of the viral protein, hepatitis delta antigen (HDAg), to be synthesized from a single open reading frame. Editing at the amber/W site is thought to be catalyzed by one of the cellular enzymes known as adenosine deaminases that act on RNA (ADARs). In vitro, the enzymes ADAR1 and ADAR2 deaminate adenosines within many different sequences of base-paired RNA. Since promiscuous deamination could compromise the viability of HDV, we wondered if additional deamination events occurred within the highly base paired HDV RNA. By sequencing cDNAs derived from HDV RNA from transfected Huh-7 cells, we determined that the RNA was not extensively modified at other adenosines. Approximately 0.16 to 0.32 adenosines were modified per antigenome during 6 to 13 days posttransfection. Interestingly, all observed non-amber/W adenosine modifications, which occurred mostly at positions that are highly conserved among naturally occurring HDV isolates, were found in RNAs that were also modified at the amber/W site. Such coordinate modification likely limits potential deleterious effects of promiscuous editing. Neither viral replication nor HDAg was required for the highly specific editing observed in cells. However, HDAg was found to suppress editing at the amber/W site when expressed at levels similar to those found during HDV replication. These data suggest HDAg may regulate amber/W site editing during virus replication.


2015 ◽  
Vol 96 (12) ◽  
pp. 3460-3469 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mei Chao ◽  
Chia-Chi Lin ◽  
Feng-Ming Lin ◽  
Hsin-Pai Li ◽  
Shan-Bei Iang

Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) is the only animal RNA virus that has an unbranched rod-like genome with ribozyme activity and is replicated by host RNA polymerase. HDV RNA recombination was previously demonstrated in patients and in cultured cells by analysis of a region corresponding to the C terminus of the delta antigen (HDAg), the only viral-encoded protein. Here, a whole-genome recombination map of HDV was constructed using an experimental system in which two HDV-1 sequences were co-transfected into cultured cells and the recombinants were analysed by sequencing of cloned reverse transcription-PCR products. Fifty homologous recombinants with 60 crossovers mapping to 22 junctions were identified from 200 analysed clones. Small HDAg chimeras harbouring a junction newly detected in the recombination map were then constructed. The results further indicated that the genome-replication level of HDV was sensitive to the sixth amino acid within the N-terminal 22 aa of HDAg. Therefore, the recombination map established in this study provided a tool for not only understanding HDV RNA recombination, but also elucidating the related mechanisms, such as molecular elements responsible for the trans-activation levels of the small HDAg.


2007 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 1118-1127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinhong Chang ◽  
Xingcao Nie ◽  
Ho Eun Chang ◽  
Ziying Han ◽  
John Taylor

ABSTRACT Previous studies have indicated that the replication of the RNA genome of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) involves redirection of RNA polymerase II (Pol II), a host enzyme that normally uses DNA as a template. However, there has been some controversy about whether in one part of this HDV RNA transcription, a polymerase other than Pol II is involved. The present study applied a recently described cell system (293-HDV) of tetracycline-inducible HDV RNA replication to provide new data regarding the involvement of host polymerases in HDV transcription. The data generated with a nuclear run-on assay demonstrated that synthesis not only of genomic RNA but also of its complement, the antigenome, could be inhibited by low concentrations of amanitin specific for Pol II transcription. Subsequent studies used immunoprecipitation and rate-zonal sedimentation of nuclear extracts together with double immunostaining of 293-HDV cells, in order to examine the associations between Pol II and HDV RNAs, as well as the small delta antigen, an HDV-encoded protein known to be essential for replication. Findings include evidence that HDV replication is somehow able to direct the available delta antigen to sites in the nucleoplasm, almost exclusively colocalized with Pol II in what others have described as transcription factories.


2002 ◽  
Vol 76 (19) ◽  
pp. 9910-9919 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas B. Macnaughton ◽  
Michael M. C. Lai

ABSTRACT Moderation of hepatitis delta virus (HDV) replication is a likely prerequisite in the establishment of chronic infections and is thought to be mediated by the intracellular accumulation of large hepatitis delta antigen (L-HDAg). The regulatory role of this protein was suggested from several studies showing that cotransfection of plasmid cDNAs expressing both L-HDAg and HDV RNA results in a potent inhibition of HDV RNA replication. However, since this approach differs significantly from natural HDV infections, where HDV RNA replication is initiated from an RNA template, and L-HDAg appears only late in the replication cycle, it remains unclear whether L-HDAg can modulate HDV RNA replication in the natural HDV replication cycle. In this study, we investigated the effect of L-HDAg, produced as a result of the natural HDV RNA editing event, on HDV RNA replication. The results showed that following cDNA-free HDV RNA transfection, a steady-state level of RNA was established at 3 to 4 days posttransfection. The same level of HDV RNA was reached when a mutant HDV genome unable to make L-HDAg was used, suggesting that L-HDAg did not play a role. The rates of HDV RNA synthesis, as measured by metabolic labeling experiments, were identical at 4 and 8 days posttransfection and in the wild type and the L-HDAg-deficient mutant. We further examined the effect of overexpression of L-HDAg at various stages of the HDV replication cycle, showing that HDV RNA synthesis was resistant to L-HDAg when it was overexpressed 3 days after HDV RNA replication had initiated. Finally, we showed that, contrary to conventional thinking, L-HDAg alone, at a certain molar ratio with HDV RNA, can initiate HDV RNA replication. Thus, L-HDAg does not inherently inhibit HDV RNA synthesis. Taken together, these results indicated that L-HDAg affects neither the rate of HDV RNA synthesis nor the final steady-state level of HDV RNA and that L-HDAg is unlikely to act as an inhibitor of HDV RNA replication in the natural HDV replication cycle.


2013 ◽  
Vol 87 (15) ◽  
pp. 8665-8674 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. H. Daigh ◽  
B. L. Griffin ◽  
A. Soroush ◽  
M. R. Mamedov ◽  
J. L. Casey

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Wille ◽  
Hans J. Netter ◽  
Margaret Littlejohn ◽  
Lilly Yuen ◽  
Mang Shi ◽  
...  

AbstractHepatitis delta virus (HDV) is currently only found in humans, and is a satellite virus that depends on hepatitis B virus (HBV) envelope proteins for assembly, release and entry. Using meta-transcriptomics, we identified the genome of a novel HDV-like agent in ducks. Sequence analysis revealed secondary structures that were shared with HDV, including self-complementarity and ribozyme features. The predicted viral protein shares 32% amino acid similarity to the small delta antigen of HDV and comprises a divergent phylogenetic lineage. The discovery of an avian HDV-like agent has important implications for the understanding of the origins of HDV and subviral agents.ImportanceHepatitis delta virus (HDV) is currently only found in humans, and coinfections of HDV and Hepatitis B virus (HBV) in humans result in severe liver disease. There are a number of hypotheses for the origin of HDV, although a key component of all is that HDV only exists in humans. Here, we describe a novel deltavirus-like agent identified in wild birds. Although this agent is genetically divergent, it exhibits important similarities to HDV, such as the presence of ribosymes and self-complementarity. The discovery of an avian HDV-like agent challenges our understanding of both the origin and the co-evolutionary relationships of subviral agents with helper viruses.


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