Mutation of Hydrophobic Residues in the C-Terminal Domain of the Marburg Virus Matrix Protein VP40 Disrupts Trafficking to the Plasma Membrane

Marburg virus (MARV) is a lipid-enveloped negative sense single stranded RNA virus, which can cause a deadly hemorrhagic fever. MARV encodes seven proteins, including VP40 (mVP40), a matrix protein that interacts with the cytoplasmic leaflet of the host cell plasma membrane. VP40 traffics to the plasma membrane inner leaflet, where it assembles to facilitate the budding of viral particles. VP40 is a multifunctional protein that interacts with several host proteins and lipids to complete the viral replication cycle, but many of these host-interactions remain unknown or are poorly characterized. In this study, we investigated the role of a hydrophobic loop region in the carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of mVP40 that shares sequence similarity with the CTD of Ebola virus VP40 (eVP40). These conserved hydrophobic residues in eVP40 have been previously shown to be critical to plasma membrane localization and membrane insertion. An array of cellular experiments and confirmatory in vitro work strongly suggests proper orientation and hydrophobic residues (Phe281, Leu283, and Phe286) in the mVP40 CTD are critical to plasma membrane localization. In line with the different functions proposed for eVP40 and mVP40 CTD hydrophobic residues, molecular dynamics simulations demonstrate large flexibility of residues in the EBOV CTD whereas conserved mVP40 hydrophobic residues are more restricted in their flexibility. This study sheds further light on important amino acids and structural features in mVP40 required for its plasma membrane localization as well as differences in the functional role of CTD amino acids in eVP40 and mVP40.

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A Conserved Tryptophan in the Ebola Virus Matrix Protein C-Terminal Domain Is Required for Efficient Virus-Like Particle Formation

Pathogens ◽

10.3390/pathogens9050402 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. 402 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Kristen A. Johnson ◽

Rudramani Pokhrel ◽

Melissa R. Budicini ◽

Bernard S. Gerstman ◽

Prem P. Chapagain ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plasma Membrane ◽

Matrix Protein ◽

Ebola Virus ◽

Membrane Localization ◽

Virus Like Particles ◽

Plasma Membrane Localization ◽

The Matrix ◽

Dynamics Simulations

The Ebola virus (EBOV) harbors seven genes, one of which is the matrix protein eVP40, a peripheral protein that is sufficient to induce the formation of virus-like particles from the host cell plasma membrane. eVP40 can form different structures to fulfil different functions during the viral life cycle, although the structural dynamics of eVP40 that warrant dimer, hexamer, and octamer formation are still poorly understood. eVP40 has two conserved Trp residues at positions 95 and 191. The role of Trp95 has been characterized in depth as it serves as an important residue in eVP40 oligomer formation. To gain insight into the functional role of Trp191 in eVP40, we prepared mutations of Trp191 (W191A or W191F) to determine the effects of mutation on eVP40 plasma membrane localization and budding as well as eVP40 oligomerization. These in vitro and cellular experiments were complemented by molecular dynamics simulations of the wild-type (WT) eVP40 structure versus that of W191A. Taken together, Trp is shown to be a critical amino acid at position 191 as mutation to Ala reduces the ability of VP40 to localize to the plasma membrane inner leaflet and form new virus-like particles. Further, mutation of Trp191 to Ala or Phe shifted the in vitro equilibrium to the octamer form by destabilizing Trp191 interactions with nearby residues. This study has shed new light on the importance of interdomain interactions in stability of the eVP40 structure and the critical nature of timing of eVP40 oligomerization for plasma membrane localization and viral budding.

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TCL/RhoJ Plasma Membrane Localization and Nucleotide Exchange Is Coordinately Regulated by Amino Acids within the N Terminus and a Distal Loop Region

Journal of Biological Chemistry ◽

10.1074/jbc.m116.750026 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 291 (45) ◽

pp. 23604-23617 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Karly L. Ackermann ◽

Rebecca R. Florke ◽

Shannon S. Reyes ◽

Brooke R. Tader ◽

Michael J. Hamann

Keyword(s):

Amino Acids ◽

Plasma Membrane ◽

Membrane Localization ◽

Nucleotide Exchange ◽

Plasma Membrane Localization ◽

Loop Region ◽

N Terminus ◽

Distal Loop

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Plasma membrane-targeted ras GTPase-activating protein is a potent suppressor of p21ras function.

Molecular and Cellular Biology ◽

10.1128/mcb.13.4.2420 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 2420-2431 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

D C Huang ◽

C J Marshall ◽

J F Hancock

Keyword(s):

Plasma Membrane ◽

Catalytic Activity ◽

Catalytic Domain ◽

Cell Transformation ◽

Negative Regulator ◽

Membrane Localization ◽

Plasma Membrane Localization ◽

Terminal Domain ◽

3T3 Fibroblasts ◽

C Terminus

Although p21ras is localized to the plasma membrane, proteins it interacts with, such as the GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) ras GAP and neurofibromin (NF1), are not, suggesting that one function of p21ras GTP may be to target such proteins to the plasma membrane. To investigate the effects of targeting ras GAP to the plasma membrane, ras C-terminal motifs sufficient for plasma membrane localization of p21ras were cloned onto the C terminus of ras GAP. Plasma membrane-targeted ras GAP is growth inhibitory to NIH 3T3 fibroblasts and COS cells. This growth inhibition correlates with GAP catalytic activity, since the plasma membrane-targeted C-terminal catalytic domain or the GAP-related domain of neurofibromin is inhibitory, whereas the similarly targeted N-terminal domain is not. Moreover, the inhibition is abrogated by the inactivating mutation L902I, which abolishes ras GAP catalytic activity. Coexpression of oncogenic mutant ras rescues cell viability, but the majority of rescued colonies are phenotypically untransformed. Furthermore, in focus assays, targeted ras GAP suppresses transformation by oncogenic mutant ras, and in reversion assays, targeted ras GAP can revert cells transformed by oncogenic mutant ras. Neither the targeted or nontargeted N-terminal domain nor the L902I mutant of ras GAP has any transforming activity. These data demonstrate that ras GAP can function as a negative regulator of ras and that plasma membrane localization potentiates this activity. However, if ras GAP is involved in the effector functions of p21ras, it can only be part of the effector complex for cell transformation.

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Plasma membrane-targeted ras GTPase-activating protein is a potent suppressor of p21ras function

Molecular and Cellular Biology ◽

10.1128/mcb.13.4.2420-2431.1993 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 2420-2431

Author(s):

D C Huang ◽

C J Marshall ◽

J F Hancock

Keyword(s):

Plasma Membrane ◽

Catalytic Activity ◽

Catalytic Domain ◽

Cell Transformation ◽

Negative Regulator ◽

Membrane Localization ◽

Plasma Membrane Localization ◽

Terminal Domain ◽

3T3 Fibroblasts ◽

C Terminus

Although p21ras is localized to the plasma membrane, proteins it interacts with, such as the GTPase-activating proteins (GAPs) ras GAP and neurofibromin (NF1), are not, suggesting that one function of p21ras GTP may be to target such proteins to the plasma membrane. To investigate the effects of targeting ras GAP to the plasma membrane, ras C-terminal motifs sufficient for plasma membrane localization of p21ras were cloned onto the C terminus of ras GAP. Plasma membrane-targeted ras GAP is growth inhibitory to NIH 3T3 fibroblasts and COS cells. This growth inhibition correlates with GAP catalytic activity, since the plasma membrane-targeted C-terminal catalytic domain or the GAP-related domain of neurofibromin is inhibitory, whereas the similarly targeted N-terminal domain is not. Moreover, the inhibition is abrogated by the inactivating mutation L902I, which abolishes ras GAP catalytic activity. Coexpression of oncogenic mutant ras rescues cell viability, but the majority of rescued colonies are phenotypically untransformed. Furthermore, in focus assays, targeted ras GAP suppresses transformation by oncogenic mutant ras, and in reversion assays, targeted ras GAP can revert cells transformed by oncogenic mutant ras. Neither the targeted or nontargeted N-terminal domain nor the L902I mutant of ras GAP has any transforming activity. These data demonstrate that ras GAP can function as a negative regulator of ras and that plasma membrane localization potentiates this activity. However, if ras GAP is involved in the effector functions of p21ras, it can only be part of the effector complex for cell transformation.

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