Article
Virology
Takehiro Kanda, Masayuki Horie, Yumiko Komatsu, Keizo Tomonaga
Summary: This study focused on BoDV-2 in the Mammalian 1 orthobornavirus, demonstrating that the nucleoprotein and phosphoprotein of BoDV-2 can enhance the polymerase activity of BoDV-1, leading to increased efficiency of REVec recovery and gene expression levels.
JOURNAL OF VIROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Mako Yanai, Madoka Sakai, Ryo Komorizono, Akiko Makino, Keizo Tomonaga
Summary: This study investigated the effects of various physical and chemical conditions on the inducibility of transmission-defective Delta G-REVec. Results showed that Delta G-REVec was not influenced by freeze-thaw cycles or brief incubation at lower temperatures, but was significantly inactivated at higher temperatures. Long-term incubation, dehydration, and UV irradiation also decreased the induction titer of Delta G-REVec. Additionally, Delta G-REVec was sensitive to lower pH and chemical reagents, providing important information for the development of clinical use and biosafety management of REVec.
MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuya Hirai, Keizo Tomonaga, Masayuki Horie
Summary: This study characterized the inclusion bodies (IBs) of the mononegavirus BoDV-1 in terms of liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), revealing that the phosphoprotein (P) alone can induce LLPS and co-expression of nucleoprotein (N) and P is required for IB-like structure formation in cells. Additionally, BoDV-1 P binds to RNA, but excess RNA can dissolve the liquid droplets formed by N and P in vitro.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL MACROMOLECULES
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yuka Kaneko, Yuui Naito, Rie Koide, Nicholas F. Parrish, Tomoko Takahashi
Summary: Viral infection can induce diverse cellular immune responses. In the case of Borna disease virus type 1 (BoDV-1), infection can lead to fatal immune-mediated encephalitis, but in vitro infection is usually persistent. This study shows that TRBP, an enhancer of RNA-silencing, positively regulates BoDV RNA levels in human cells. The interaction between TRBP and BoDV RNA plays a role in regulating persistent BoDV infection.
BIOCHEMICAL AND BIOPHYSICAL RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Jason Yeung, Andrew L. Routh
Summary: In this study, we present ViReMaShiny, a web-based application built using the R Shiny framework, which allows interactive exploration and point-and-click visualization of viral recombination data in BED format. This tool can help researchers contextualize recombination events and perform downstream analysis.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Takehiro Kanda, Madoka Sakai, Akiko Makino, Keizo Tomonaga
Summary: The study found that exogenous expression of Matrix protein (M) and Glycoprotein (G), which are constituents of the viral lipid envelope, significantly facilitates the formation and propagation of BoDV-1 infectious particles without affecting viral RNA synthesis. Additionally, simultaneous transfection of M and G expression plasmids with N, P, and L helper plasmids improves the rescue efficiency of recombinant BoDV-1. The findings suggest that BoDV-1 may suppress excess expression of M and G to reduce cytopathic effects, leading to persistent infection.
JOURNAL OF GENERAL VIROLOGY
(2022)
Article
Microbiology
Edward Dobbs, Greg Deakin, Julie Bennett, Caoimhe Fleming-Archibald, Ian Jones, Helen Grogan, Keny Burton
Summary: The study examined viral interactions in Agaricus bisporus cultures with 9 viruses, identifying four clusters of viral RNA indicating synergism and coreplication. Diseased fruitbodies showed significantly higher levels of specific viral RNA, suggesting an exponential shift in replicative capacity. These interactions appeared to be stochastic, with disease symptoms randomly distributed and high levels of specific viral RNA present.
Article
Virology
Dain Lee, Young-Bin Yu, Jae-Ho Choi, A-Hyun Jo, Su-Min Hong, Ju-Chan Kang, Jun-Hwan Kim
Summary: Shrimp aquaculture is a valuable and globally traded industry, but it faces challenges from viral diseases. This review provides information on shrimp viral diseases designated by the World Organization for Animal Health and highlights the latest trends in shrimp diseases.
Article
Microbiology
Ahmed Kheimar, Laetitia Trapp-Fragnet, Andele M. Conradie, Luca D. Bertzbach, Yu You, Mohammad A. Sabsabi, Benedikt B. Kaufer
Summary: The highly expressed human telomerase RNA (hTR) plays a protective role in many cancers, while the viral telomerase RNA (vTR) encoded by the highly oncogenic Marek's disease virus (MDV) is crucial for tumor formation. However, hTR cannot replace the function of vTR, indicating host-specific anti-apoptotic functions of vTR and hTR.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Microbiology
Ahmed Kheimar, Laetitia Trapp-Fragnet, Andele M. Conradie, Luca D. Bertzbach, Yu You, Mohammad A. Sabsabi, Benedikt B. Kaufer
Summary: This study investigates the role of human telomerase RNA (hTR) in tumorigenesis using a natural virus/host model. The results show that viral telomerase RNA (vTR) and cellular TRs in humans and chickens possess host-specific anti-apoptotic functions, providing important insights for therapeutic strategies targeting apoptosis inhibition in tumorigenesis.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Fakhreddine Houhou, Maricarmen Marti, Teresa Cordero, Veronica Aragones, Cristina Saez, Jaime Cebolla-Cornejo, Ana Perez de Castro, Manuel Rodriguez-Concepcion, Belen Pico, Jose-Antonio Daros
Summary: This study presents a novel approach to enhance the carotenoid content of edible fruits without the use of transgenic technology. By modifying a viral RNA vector, the fruits of zucchini plants were enriched with health-promoting carotenoids. Although controversial due to the use of genetically modified viral RNA, this method demonstrates the possibility of metabolically fortifying edible fruits without introducing transgenes.
BIOTECHNOLOGY JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jiqin Wu, Xinyu Wang, Qiaojie Liu, Guoliang Lu, Peng Gong
Summary: This study presents crystal structures of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase complex from dengue virus serotype 2, revealing a dramatic refolding of the priming element during elongation and confirming its essential interactions with the RNA duplex backbone for enzyme stability. Enzymology data further suggest that the critical refolding transition of the priming element likely occurs after the synthesis of a 4- to 5-nucleotide product.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Min J. Jang, Gerard M. Coughlin, Cameron R. Jackson, Xinhong Chen, Miguel R. Chuapoco, Julia L. Vendemiatti, Alexander Z. Wang, Viviana Gradinaru
Summary: In this study, a ultrasensitive, sequential fluorescence in situ hybridization (USeqFISH) method was developed for spatial transcriptomic profiling of endogenous and viral RNA. The method allows investigation of the transduction and cell subtype biases of different AAV variants, as well as profiling of pooled regulatory cargos in AAV genomes. USeqFISH also shows potential applications in in situ AAV profiling and multimodal single-cell analysis in non-human primates.
NATURE BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemical Research Methods
Shinzi Ogasawara, Ai Yamada
Summary: RNA editing has gained attention as a method for genetic information editing without damaging the genome. A new method called RNA overwriting, using the influenza A virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, has been developed, allowing both cleavage and extension for editing any type of RNA.
ACS SYNTHETIC BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Christina Frank, Jonathan Wickel, Dirk Bramer, Jakob Matschke, Richard Ibe, Caroline Gazivoda, Albrecht Guenther, Christian Hartmann, Kordt Rehn, Daniel Cadar, Thomas E. Mayer, Kirsten Poertner, Hendrik Wilking, Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, Dennis Tappe
Summary: In 2021, three cases of encephalitis caused by Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) were diagnosed in Germany. These cases were from different states, with two being acute infections and one being diagnosed retrospectively. The report emphasizes the importance of testing for BoDV-1 in encephalitis cases in areas with known animal Borna disease endemicity in Europe.
EMERGING MICROBES & INFECTIONS
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Carlos Henrique Camargo, Amanda Yaeko Yamada, Andreia Rodrigues de Souza, Claudio Tavares Sacchi, Alex Domingos Reis, Marlon Benedito Nascimento Santos, Denise Brandao de Assis, Eneas de Carvalho, Elizabeth Harummyy Takagi, Marcos Paulo Vieira Cunha, Monique Ribeiro Tiba-Casas
Summary: This study reveals the silent spread of New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM) carbapenemase in Brazil, particularly in Enterobacterales other than Klebsiella spp. It highlights the diverse species and coexistence of important resistance genes in these NDM-producing strains. Prompt detection and effective measures are crucial to mitigate the further dissemination of NDM carbapenemase and preserve antimicrobial therapy options in hospital settings.
MICROBIOLOGY AND IMMUNOLOGY
(2024)