scholarly journals Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus K-bZIP Is a Coregulator of K-Rta: Physical Association and Promoter-Dependent Transcriptional Repression

2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (2) ◽  
pp. 1441-1451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshihiro Izumiya ◽  
Su-Fang Lin ◽  
Thomas Ellison ◽  
Ling-Yu Chen ◽  
Chie Izumiya ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Basic Leucine Zipper ◽  
Interaction Domain ◽  
Ample Evidence ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is a human gammaherpesvirus that has been implicated in the pathogenesis of Kaposi's sarcoma and B-cell neoplasms. The genomic organization of KSHV is similar to that of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). EBV encodes two transcriptional factors, Rta and Zta, which functionally interact to transactivate EBV genes during replication and reactivation from latency. KSHV encodes a basic leucine zipper protein (K-bZIP), a homologue of EBV Zta, and K-Rta, the homologue of EBV Rta. EBV Rta and Zta are strong transcriptional transactivators. Although there is ample evidence that K-Rta is a potent transactivator, the role of K-bZIP as a transcriptional factor is much less clear. In this study, we report that K-bZIP modulates K-Rta function. We show that K-bZIP directly interacts with K-Rta in vivo and in vitro. This association is specific, requiring the basic domain (amino acids 122 to 189) of K-bZIP and a specific region (amino acids 499 to 550) of K-Rta, and can be detected with K-bZIP and K-Rta endogenously expressed in BCBL-1 cells treated with tetradecanoyl phorbol acetate. The functional relevance of this association was revealed by the observation that K-bZIP represses the transactivation of the ORF57 promoter by K-Rta in a dose-dependent manner. K-bZIP lacking the interaction domain fails to repress K-Rta-mediated transactivation; this finding attests to the specificity of the repression. Interestingly, this repression is not observed for the promoter of polyadenylated nuclear (PAN) RNA, another target of K-Rta; thus, repression is promoter dependent. Finally, we provide evidence that the modulation of K-Rta by K-bZIP also occurs in vivo during reactivation of the viral genome in BCBL-1 cells. When K-bZIP is overexpressed in BCBL-1 cells, the level of expression of ORF57 but not PAN RNA is repressed. These data support the model that one function of K-bZIP is to modulate the activity of the transcriptional transactivator K-Rta.

scholarly journals Suppression of Tetradecanoyl Phorbol Acetate-Induced Lytic Reactivation of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus by K1 Signal Transduction

2002 ◽  
Vol 76 (23) ◽  
pp. 12185-12199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bok-Soo Lee ◽  
Mini Paulose-Murphy ◽  
Young-Hwa Chung ◽  
Michelle Connlole ◽  
Steven Zeichner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Signal Transduction ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Ectopic Expression ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Viral Reactivation ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Tetradecanoyl Phorbol Acetate ◽  
Lytic Reactivation ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

ABSTRACT The K1 protein of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) contains an immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) in its cytoplasmic region and elicits cellular signal transduction through this motif. To investigate the role of K1 signal transduction in KSHV replication, we expressed full-length K1 and CD8-K1 chimeras in BCBL1 cells. Unlike its strong signaling activity in uninfected B lymphocytes, K1 did not induce intracellular calcium mobilization or NF-AT activation at detectable levels in KSHV-infected BCBL1 cells. Instead, K1 signaling dramatically suppressed KSHV lytic reactivation induced by tetradecanoyl phorbol acetate (TPA) stimulation, but not by ORF50 ectopic expression. Mutational analysis showed that the cytoplasmic ITAM sequence of K1 was required for this suppression. Viral microarray and immunoblot analyses demonstrated that K1 signaling suppressed the TPA-mediated increase in the expression of a large subset of viral lytic genes in KSHV-infected BCBL1 cells. Furthermore, electrophoretic mobility shift assays demonstrated that TPA-induced activation of AP-1, NF-κB, and Oct-1 activities was severely diminished in BCBL1 cells expressing the K1 cytoplasmic domain. The reduced activities of these transcription factors may confer the observed reduction in viral lytic gene expression. These results demonstrate that K1-mediated signal transduction in KSHV-infected cells is profoundly different from that in KSHV-negative cells. Furthermore, K1 signal transduction efficiently suppresses TPA-mediated viral reactivation in an ITAM-dependent manner, and this suppression may contribute to the establishment and/or maintenance of KSHV latency in vivo.

scholarly journals Mechanism of Angiopoietin-1 Upregulation in Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus-Infected PEL Cell Lines

2015 ◽  
Vol 89 (9) ◽  
pp. 4786-4797 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Zheng ◽  
Eriko Ohsaki ◽  
Keiji Ueda
Keyword(s):  
Cell Lines ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Primary Effusion Lymphoma ◽  
Regulatory Region ◽  
Leukemia Cell ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Angiopoietin 1

ABSTRACTAngiopoietin-1 (ANGPT-1) is a secreted glycoprotein that was first characterized as a ligand of the Tie2 receptor. In a previous study using microarray analysis, we found that the expression of ANGPT-1 was upregulated in Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV)-infected primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) cell lines compared with that in uninfected Burkitt and other leukemia cell lines. Other authors have also reported focal expression of ANGPT-1 mRNA in biopsy specimens of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) tissue from patients with AIDS. Here, to confirm these findings, we examined the expression and secretion levels of ANGPT-1 in KSHV-infected PEL cell lines and address the mechanisms ofANGPT-1transcriptional regulation. We also showed that ANGPT-1 was expressed and localized in the cytoplasm and secreted into the supernatant of KSHV-infected PEL cells. Deletion studies of the regulatory region revealed that the region encompassing nucleotides −143 to −125 of theANGPT-1-regulating sequence was responsible for this upregulation. Moreover, an electrophoretic mobility shift assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation, followed by quantitative PCR, suggested that some KSHV-infected PEL cell line-specific DNA-binding factors, such as OCT-1, should be involved in the upregulation ofANGPT-1in a sequence-dependent manner.IMPORTANCEWe confirmed that ANGPT-1 was expressed in and secreted from KSHV-infected PEL cells and that the transcriptional activity ofANGPT-1was upregulated. A 19-bp fragment was identified as the region responsible forANGPT-1upregulation through binding with OCT-1 as a core factor in PEL cells. This study suggests that ANGPT-1 is overproduced in KSHV-infected PEL cells, which could affect the pathophysiology of AIDS patients with PEL.

scholarly journals Early Events in Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Infection of Target Cells

2009 ◽  
Vol 84 (5) ◽  
pp. 2188-2199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bala Chandran
Keyword(s):  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Mode Of Entry ◽  
Successful Infection ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Cell Signaling Pathways

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), the most recently identified member of the herpesvirus family, infects a variety of target cells in vitro and in vivo. This minireview surveys current information on the early events of KSHV infection, including virus-receptor interactions, involved envelope glycoproteins, mode of entry, intracellular trafficking, and initial viral and host gene expression programs. We describe data supporting the hypothesis that KSHV manipulates preexisting host cell signaling pathways to allow successful infection. The various signaling events triggered by infection, and their potential roles in the different stages of infection and disease pathogenesis, are summarized.

scholarly journals Suberoyl bis-hydroxamic acid reactivates Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus through histone acetylation and induces apoptosis in lymphoma cells

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shun Iida ◽  
Sohtaro Mine ◽  
Keiji Ueda ◽  
Tadaki Suzuki ◽  
Hideki Hasegawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Histone Acetylation ◽  
Hydroxamic Acid ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Primary Effusion Lymphoma ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Mitochondrial Pathway ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Transcription Activator ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is an etiologic agent of Kaposi’s sarcoma as well as primary effusion lymphoma (PEL), an aggressive B-cell neoplasm which mostly arises in immunocompromised individuals. Lytic replication of KSHV is also associated with a subset of multicentric Castleman diseases. At present, there is no specific treatment available for PEL and its prognosis is poor. In this study, we found that the histone deacetylase inhibitor suberoyl bis-hydroxamic acid (SBHA) induced KSHV reactivation in PEL cells in a dose-dependent manner. Next-generation sequencing analysis showed that more than 40% of all transcripts expressed in SBHA-treated PEL cells originated from the KSHV genome compared with less than 1% in untreated cells. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assays demonstrated that SBHA induced histone acetylation targeting the promoter region of the KSHV replication and transcription activator gene. However, there was no significant change in methylation status of the promoter region of this gene. In addition to its effect of KSHV reactivation, this study revealed that SBHA induces apoptosis in PEL cells in a dose-dependent manner, inducing acetylation and phosphorylation of p53, cleavage of caspases, and expression of pro-apoptotic factors such as Bim and Bax. These findings suggest that SBHA reactivates KSHV from latency and induces apoptosis through the mitochondrial pathway in PEL cells. Therefore, SBHA can be considered a new tool for induction of KSHV reactivation, and could provide a novel therapeutic strategy against PEL. IMPORTANCE Kaposi’s sarcoma and primary effusion lymphoma cells are latently infected with Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), whereas KSHV replication is frequently observed in multicentric Castleman disease. Although KSHV replication can be induced by some chemical reagents (e.g. 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate), the mechanism of KSHV replication is not fully understood. We found that the histone deacetylase inhibitor suberoyl bis-hydroxamic acid (SBHA) induced KSHV reactivation with high efficiency, through histone acetylation in the promoter of the replication and transcription activator gene, compared with 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate. SBHA also induced apoptosis through the mitochondrial pathway in KSHV-infected cells, with a lower EC50 than measured for viral reactivation. SBHA could be used in a highly efficient replication system for KSHV in vitro, and as a tool to reveal the mechanism of replication and pathogenesis of KSHV. The ability of SBHA to induce apoptosis at lower levels than needed to stimulate KSHV reactivation, indicates its therapeutic potential.

scholarly journals Molecular Mechanism of BST2/Tetherin Downregulation by K5/MIR2 of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus

2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (19) ◽  
pp. 9672-9681 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mandana Mansouri ◽  
Kasinath Viswanathan ◽  
Janet L. Douglas ◽  
Jennie Hines ◽  
Jean Gustin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Defense Mechanism ◽  
Transmembrane Protein ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Type Ii ◽  
Amino Terminal ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Hiv 1

ABSTRACT K3/MIR1 and K5/MIR2 of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) are viral members of the membrane-associated RING-CH (MARCH) ubiquitin ligase family and contribute to viral immune evasion by directing the conjugation of ubiquitin to immunostimulatory transmembrane proteins. In a quantitative proteomic screen for novel host cell proteins downregulated by viral immunomodulators, we previously observed that K5, as well as the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) immunomodulator VPU, reduced steady-state levels of bone marrow stromal cell antigen 2 (BST2; also called CD317 or tetherin), suggesting that BST2 might be a novel substrate of K5 and VPU. Recent work revealed that in the absence of VPU, HIV-1 virions are tethered to the plasma membrane in BST2-expressing HeLa cells. By targeting BST2, K5 might thus similarly overcome an innate antiviral host defense mechanism. Here we establish that despite its type II transmembrane topology and carboxy-terminal glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI) anchor, BST2 represents a bona fide target of K5 that is downregulated during primary infection by and reactivation of KSHV. Upon exit of the protein from the endoplasmic reticulum, lysines in the short amino-terminal domain of BST2 are ubiquitinated by K5, resulting in rapid degradation of BST2. Ubiquitination of BST2 is required for degradation, since BST2 lacking cytosolic lysines was K5 resistant and ubiquitin depletion by proteasome inhibitors restored BST2 surface expression. Thus, BST2 represents the first type II transmembrane protein targeted by K5 and the first example of a protein that is both ubiquitinated and GPI linked. We further demonstrate that KSHV release is decreased in the absence of K5 in a BST2-dependent manner, suggesting that K5 contributes to the evasion of intracellular antiviral defense programs.

scholarly journals The Specificities of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus-Encoded E3 Ubiquitin Ligases Are Determined by the Positions of Lysine or Cysteine Residues within the Intracytoplasmic Domains of Their Targets

2008 ◽  
Vol 82 (8) ◽  
pp. 4184-4189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ken Cadwell ◽  
Laurent Coscoy
Keyword(s):  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Transmembrane Domain ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Cysteine Residues ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Class I Mhc ◽  
Mhc I ◽  
E3 Ligases ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus encodes two homologous E3 ligases, MIR1 and MIR2, that mediate the ubiquitination and subsequent downregulation of several cell surface proteins, and in particular major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) molecules. We have previously shown that, in addition to lysine ubiquitination, MIR1 has the unique ability of transferring ubiquitin onto MHC-I molecules lacking available lysine residues, in a cysteine-dependent manner. Here we report that MIR1 activity is maximal when either a lysine or cysteine residue is placed approximately 15 amino acids away from the transmembrane domain, whereas MIR2 preferentially targets residues, including cysteines, that are closer to the transmembrane domain. Thus MIR1 and -2 can distinguish their substrates based on the position of the lysine or cysteine residues, suggesting that these proteins have evolved to target different sets of surface molecules. These results indicate that the position of target residues within a substrate is an essential determinant of E3 ubiquitin ligase specificity.

scholarly journals CAK-independent Activation of CDK6 by a Viral Cyclin

2001 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 3987-3999 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philipp Kaldis ◽  
Päivi M. Ojala ◽  
Lily Tong ◽  
Tomi P. Mäkelä ◽  
Mark J. Solomon
Keyword(s):  
Conformational Changes ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Cell Cycle Progression ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Binding Assays ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Induced Apoptosis ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

In normal cells, activation of cyclin-dependent kinases (cdks) requires binding to a cyclin and phosphorylation by the cdk-activating kinase (CAK). The Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus encodes a protein with similarity to D-type cyclins. This KSHV-cyclin activates CDK6, alters its substrate specificity, and renders CDK6 insensitive to inhibition by the cdk inhibitor p16INK4a. Here we investigate the regulation of the CDK6/KSHV-cyclin kinase with the use of purified proteins and a cell-based assay. We find that KSHV-cyclin can activate CDK6 independent of phosphorylation by CAK in vitro. In addition, CAK phosphorylation decreased the p16INK4asensitivity of CDK6/KSHV-cyclin complexes. In cells, expression of CDK6 or to a lesser degree of a nonphosphorylatable CDK6T177Atogether with KSHV-cyclin induced apoptosis, indicating that CDK6 activation by KSHV-cyclin can proceed in the absence of phosphorylation by CAK in vivo. Coexpression of p16 partially protected cells from cell death. p16 and KSHV-cyclin can form a ternary complex with CDK6 that can be detected by binding assays as well as by conformational changes in CDK6. The Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus has adopted a clever strategy to render cell cycle progression independent of mitogenic signals, cdk inhibition, or phosphorylation by CAK.

scholarly journals RBP-J (CSL) Is Essential for Activation of the K14/vGPCR Promoter of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus by the Lytic Switch Protein RTA

2004 ◽  
Vol 78 (13) ◽  
pp. 6818-6826 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuying Liang ◽  
Don Ganem
Keyword(s):  
Notch Signaling ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Activation Function ◽  
Deletion Mapping ◽  
Mobility Shift ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assays

ABSTRACT The Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) gene product virally encoded G protein-coupled receptor (vGPCR) is a homolog of cellular GPCRs and has been proposed to play important roles in KSHV-induced angiogenesis. The most abundant vGPCR-containing transcripts are K14/vGPCR bicistronic RNAs that are strongly induced during lytic reactivation. Here we show that the promoter governing this transcript is strongly responsive to activation by the viral lytic switch protein RTA. By deletion mapping and scanning mutation analyses, we have identified three putative RTA response elements (A, B, and C) in this promoter. However, none of these sites appear to directly bind RTA in electrophoretic mobility shift assays (EMSA). Site C corresponds to a canonical binding site for RBP-J, a sequence-specific transcriptional repressor that is normally the target of Notch signaling. RBP-J can bind RTA and recruit it to its cognate recognition site; when this happens, the activation function of RTA can relieve RBP-J-mediated repression and upregulate expression of the targeted gene. EMSA studies reveal that both sites A and C can bind to RBP-J; sequence inspection reveals that site A is a novel functional variant of known RBP-J recognition sites. (Site B corresponds to an as-yet-unknown host DNA-binding protein.) The importance of sites A and C in vivo is underscored by the observation that K14/vGPCR promoter function is dramatically inhibited in cells genetically deficient in RBP-J. The regulation of K14/vGPCR transcripts by RBP-J raises the possibility that other modulators of Notch signaling might be able to induce expression of this RNA outside the context of lytic KSHV replication.

scholarly journals Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus LANA2 Is a B-Cell-Specific Latent Viral Protein That Inhibits p53

2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 429-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carmen Rivas ◽  
Ai-En Thlick ◽  
Carlo Parravicini ◽  
Patrick S. Moore ◽  
Yuan Chang
Keyword(s):  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Primary Effusion Lymphoma ◽  
Blot Hybridization ◽  
Human Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Nuclear Antigen ◽  
P53 Overexpression ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

ABSTRACT Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), or human herpesvirus 8, is associated with three proliferative diseases ranging from viral cytokine-induced hyperplasia to monoclonal neoplasia: multicentric Castleman's disease (CD), Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), and primary effusion lymphoma (PEL). Here we report a new latency-associated 1,704-bp KSHV spliced gene belonging to a cluster of KSHV sequences having homology to the interferon regulatory factor (IRF) family of transcription factors. ORFK10.5 encodes a protein, latency-associated nuclear antigen 2 (LANA2), which is expressed in KSHV-infected hematopoietic tissues, including PEL and CD but not KS lesions. LANA2 is abundantly expressed in the nuclei of cultured KSHV-infected B cells. Transcription of K10.5 in PEL cell cultures is not inhibited by DNA polymerase inhibitors nor significantly induced by phorbol ester treatment. Unlike LANA1, LANA2 does not elicit a serologic response from patients with KS, PEL, or CD as measured by Western blot hybridization. Both KSHV vIRF1 (ORFK9) and LANA2 (ORFK10.5) appear to have arisen through gene duplication of a captured cellular IRF gene. LANA2 is a potent inhibitor of p53-induced transcription in reporter assays. LANA2 antagonizes apoptosis due to p53 overexpression in p53-null SAOS-2 cells and apoptosis due to doxorubicin treatment of wild-type p53 U2OS cells. While LANA2 specifically interacts with amino acids 290 to 393 of p53 in glutathione S-transferase pull-down assays, we were unable to demonstrate LANA2-p53 interaction in vivo by immunoprecipitation. These findings show that KSHV has tissue-specific latent gene expression programs and identify a new latent protein which may contribute to KSHV tumorigenesis in hematopoietic tissues via p53 inhibition.

scholarly journals A Rhesus Macaque Rhadinovirus Related to Kaposi’s Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus/Human Herpesvirus 8 Encodes a Functional Homologue of Interleukin-6

1999 ◽  
Vol 73 (7) ◽  
pp. 6177-6181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johnan A. R. Kaleeba ◽  
Eric P. Bergquam ◽  
Scott W. Wong
Keyword(s):  
Interleukin 6 ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma ◽  
Human Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma ◽  
Open Reading Frames ◽  
Human Herpesvirus 8 ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Herpesvirus 8 ◽  
Kaposi's Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus ◽  
Kaposi’S Sarcoma Associated Herpesvirus

ABSTRACT The rhesus rhadinovirus strain 17577 (RRV strain 17577) genome is essentially colinear with human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8)/Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) and encodes several analogous open reading frames (ORFs), including the homologue of cellular interleukin-6 (IL-6). To determine if the RRV IL-6-like ORF (RvIL-6) is biologically functional, it was expressed either transiently in COS-1 cells or purified from bacteria as a glutathioneS-transferase (GST)-RvIL-6 fusion and analyzed by IL-6 bioassays. Utilizing the IL-6-dependent B9 cell line, we found that both forms of RvIL-6 supported cell proliferation in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, antibodies specific to the IL-6 receptor (IL-6R) or the gp130 subunit were capable of blocking the stimulatory effects of RvIL-6. Reciprocal titrations of GST-RvIL-6 against human recombinant IL-6 produced a more-than-additive stimulatory effect, suggesting that RvIL-6 does not inhibit but may instead potentiate normal cellular IL-6 signaling to B cells. These results demonstrate that RRV encodes an accessory protein with IL-6-like activity.

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