Abstract | BACKGROUND: UL7, a tegument protein of Herpes Simplex Virus type I (HSV-1), is highly conserved in viral infection and proliferation and has an unknown mechanism of action. METHODS: A HSV-1 UL7 mutant (UL7-MU) was constructed using the CRISPR-cas9 system. The replication rate and plaque morphology were used to analyze the biological characteristics of the wild-type (WT), UL7-MU and MU-complemented P1 viruses. The virulence of the viruses was evaluated in mice. Real-time RT-qPCR and ChIP assays were used to determine the expression levels of relevant genes. RESULTS: The replication capacity of a recombinant virus (UL7-MU strain) was 10-fold lower than that of the WT strain. The neurovirulence and pathologic effect of the UL7-MU strain were attenuated in infected mice compared with the WT strain. In the latency model, the expression of latency-associated transcript (LAT) in the central nervous system (CNS) and trigeminal nerve was lower in UL7-MU-infected mice than in WT strain-infected mice. The transcription level of the immediate-early gene α-4 in UL7-MU-infected cells was reduced by approximately 2-fold compared with the clear transcriptional peak identified in WT strain-infected Vero cells within 7 h post- infection (p.i.). CONCLUSION: By modulating the transcription of the α-4 gene, UL7 may be involved in transcriptional regulation through its interaction with the transcript complex structure of the viral genome during HSV-1 infection.
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Authors | Xingli Xu, Shengtao Fan, Jienan Zhou, Ying Zhang, Yanchun Che, Hongzhi Cai, Lichun Wang, Lei Guo, Longding Liu, Qihan Li |
Journal | Virology journal
(Virol J)
Vol. 13
Pg. 152
(09 13 2016)
ISSN: 1743-422X [Electronic] England |
PMID | 27618986
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
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Chemical References |
- Immediate-Early Proteins
- UL7 protein, human herpesvirus 1
- Viral Matrix Proteins
- herpes simplex virus, type 1 protein ICP4
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Topics |
- Animals
- Gene Expression Regulation, Viral
- Herpes Simplex
(virology)
- Herpesvirus 1, Human
(genetics, metabolism, pathogenicity)
- Humans
- Immediate-Early Proteins
(genetics, metabolism)
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred BALB C
- Viral Matrix Proteins
(genetics, metabolism)
- Virulence
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