Masaya Takemoto

Discovery of a Second Form of Tripartite Complex Containing gH-gL of Human Herpesvirus 6 and Observations on CD46

ABSTRACT The human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) glycoprotein H (gH)-glycoprotein L (gL) complex associates with glycoprotein Q (gQ) (Y. Mori, P. Akkapaiboon, X. Yang, and K. Yamanishi, J. Virol. 77:2452-2458, 2003), and the gH-gL-gQ complex interacts with human CD46 (Y. Mori, X. Yang, P. Akkapaiboon, T. Okuno, and K. Yamanishi, J. Virol. 77:4992-4999, 2003). Here, we show that the HHV-6 U47 gene, which is a positional homolog of the human cytomegalovirus glycoprotein O (gO) gene, encodes a third component of the HHV-6 gH-gL-containing envelope complex. A monoclonal antibody (MAb) against the amino terminus of HHV-6 gO reacted in immunoblots with protein species migrating at 120 to 130 kDa and 74 to 80 kDa in lysates of HHV-6-infected cells and with a 74- to 80-kDa protein species in purified virions. The 80-kDa form of gO was coimmunoprecipitated with an anti-gH MAb, but an anti-gQ MAb, which coimmunoprecipitated gH, did not coprecipitate gO. Furthermore, the gH-gL-gO complex did not bind to human CD46, indicating that the complex was not a ligand for CD46. These findings suggested that the viral envelope contains at least two kinds of tripartite complexes, gH-gL-gQ and gH-gL-gO, and that the gH-gL-gO complex may play a role different from that of gH-gL-gQ during viral infection. This is the first report of two kinds of gH-gL complexes on the viral envelope in a member of the herpesvirus family.

The R3 Region, One of Three Major Repetitive Regions of Human Herpesvirus 6, Is a Strong Enhancer of Immediate-Early Gene U95

ABSTRACT An immediate-early (IE) gene of human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), U95, has similarity at the amino acid level to the murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV) IE2 gene and is related to the human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) US22 gene family. Sequence analyses of U95 cDNA clones revealed that the transcription start site was located about 1.6 kbp upstream of the putative initiating ATG and that the transcript consisted of two exons. A single intron extended from nucleotides 142589 to 144229, which contained ORF U94. A protein with a molecular mass of about 120 kDa was translated from this cDNA clone in an in vitro transcription-translation assay. The transcription start site was found to be 220 bp downstream of the R3 region by primer extension analysis. HHV-6 has three repetitive elements, R1, R2, and R3, in or near the IE-A locus. R3 is composed of 24 copies of a 104- to 107-bp sequence element, which contains multiple putative binding sites for cellular transcription factors such as AP2 and NF-κB, and its biological significance has yet to be elucidated. The region between −710 and +46 relative to the transcription start site of U95 was analyzed in this study. Deletion from −710 to −396, corresponding to three copies of an R3 unit, decreased the promoter activity by 15-fold, and coexpression of IκBα(S32A/S36A) repressed it to almost the same level. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays showed that NF-κB family members p50 and c-Rel bound to NF-κB sites derived from the R3 region. These results demonstrate that R3 strongly enhances the U95 promoter activity and that NF-κB and binding sites for NF-κB in the R3 region play an important role in its activation. Because U95 promoter activity correlated with the number of R3 units, which each contained an NF-κB site, the repetitive organization of R3 is important for regulating U95 transcription.

Human Herpesvirus 6 Open Reading Frame U14 Protein and Cellular p53 Interact with Each Other and Are Contained in the Virion

ABSTRACT A mass spectroscopic analysis of proteins from human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6)-infected cells showed that the HHV-6 U14 protein coimmunoprecipitated with the tumor suppressor p53. The binding of U14 to p53 was verified by coimmunoprecipitation experiments in both Molt-3 cells infected with HHV-6 and 293 cells cotransfected with U14 and p53 expression vectors. Indirect immunofluorescence assays (IFAs) showed that by 18 h postinfection (hpi) U14 localized to the dot-like structures observed in both the nucleus and cytoplasm where p53 was partly accumulated. Despite Northern blotting evidence that U14 follows late kinetics, the U14 protein was detected immediately after infection (at 3 hpi) by IFA. In addition, by Western blotting, U14 was detected at 0 hpi or in the presence of cycloheximide which completely abolished the expression of IE1 protein. In addition to U14, p53 was detected at 0 hpi although it was not detected in mock-infected cells. Furthermore, both U14 and p53 were clearly detected in the viral particles by Western blotting and immunoelectron microscopy, supporting the idea that U14 and p53 are incorporated into virions. Our study provides the first evidence of the incorporation of cellular p53 into viral particles and suggests that p53 may play an important role in viral infection.

Human herpesvirus 6 ganciclovir-resistant strain with amino acid substitutions associated with the death of an allogeneic stem cell transplant recipient

BACKGROUND Viral resistance to antiviral drugs can cause serious complications in immunosuppressed patients. We isolated from an allogeneic stem cell transplant (SCT) recipient an antiviral-resistant human herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6) strain with mutations that caused amino acid substitutions. OBJECTIVE To study the impact of mutations in the U38 and U69 genes of the ganciclovir (GCV)-resistant HHV-6 strain associated with the death of the SCT recipient. STUDY DESIGN Viruses were obtained from blood taken during symptomatic disease. Mutations in the genes for U69 protein kinase and U38 DNA polymerase were analyzed and the effects of the U69 mutations on GCV resistance were assayed using a recombinant baculovirus system. RESULTS Increasing HHV-6 antigenemia occurred after 2-3 months of preemptive GCV therapy, followed by symptomatic HHV-6 disease that ended in fatal fungus-related septic shock. The HHV-6 strain isolated from the patient was 100-fold more resistant to GCV than was a wild-type strain. New mutations were found in HHV-6 genes U38 (P462S and A565V) and U69 (L202I and L213I). The mutation of U38 P462S corresponds to a mutation in the UL54 gene (P522S) of a GCV-resistant HCMV. The U69 mutations did not alter GCV sensitivity in baculovirus GCV-resistant assay system. CONCLUSIONS Drug-resistant mutations arising during preemptive therapy may complicate post-transplant HHV-6 disease in SCT recipients. The increased copy number during GCV treatment of this new GCV-resistant HHV-6 strain correlated with mutations in the U69 and U38 genes. Since the kinase mutation did not alter sensitivity to GCV when tested in the in vitro system, it is likely that the substitutions in the polymerase related to GCV resistance.

Inhibitory activity of oxyresveratrol on wild-type and drug-resistant varicella-zoster virus replication in vitro

The anti-herpes simplex virus (HSV) compound, oxyresveratrol, purified from a Thai traditional medicinal plant of Artocarpus lakoocha, was evaluated for its anti-varicella-zoster virus (VZV) activity. This compound exhibited IC(50) values (50%-inhibitory concentrations for virus plaque formation) of 12.82, 12.80, 12.99 and 12.82 microg/ml against wild type, thymidine kinase-deficient and two types of DNA polymerase mutants with acyclovir-resistance, respectively. Thus oxyresveratrol showed a broad spectrum of anti-VZV activity with a mechanism of action different from that of acyclovir.

Human herpesvirus-6 infection induces the reorganization of membrane microdomains in target cells, which are required for virus entry.

Cell-membrane raft microdomains are important for successful infection by several viruses. However, their role in the cell-entry process of human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) is unknown. Here we tested whether HHV-6 requires cell-membrane rafts for its entry. When cell-membrane rafts were disrupted by cholesterol depletion, target-cell entry by HHV-6 was inhibited, although the virus bound normally to the cells. HHV-6 infectivity was partially rescued by adding exogenous cholesterol. Interestingly, the HHV-6 cellular receptor, CD46, was found in the rafts after virus attachment, but not in the rafts of uninfected cells, indicating that HHV-6 infection induces the re-location of its receptor into the rafts. Furthermore, glycoprotein Q1, part of a viral glycoprotein complex that binds CD46, was also associated with rafts immediately after infection. These data suggest that cellular-membrane lipid rafts are important in viral entry and that HHV-6 may enter the target cells via the rafts.

Recognition of a Novel Stage of Betaherpesvirus Latency in Human Herpesvirus 6

ABSTRACT Latency-associated transcripts of human herpesvirus 6 (H6LTs) (K. Kondo et al. J. Virol. 76:4145-4151, 2002) were maximally expressed at a fairly stable intermediate stage between latency and reactivation both in vivo and in vitro. H6LTs functioned as sources of immediate-early protein 1 at this stage, which up-regulated the viral reactivation.

Novel Anticytomegalovirus Activity of Immunosuppressant Mizoribine and Its Synergism with Ganciclovir

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is a prominent infection in transplant recipients. The immunosuppressive drug mizoribine was shown to have anti-CMV activity in vitro and was reported to have an anti-CMV effect in renal transplantation. This study characterized the anti-CMV activity of mizoribine in vitro and its synergistic activity with ganciclovir. Mizoribine suppressed replication and at the EC50 for plaque inhibition of 12.0 μg/ml. Mizoribine and ganciclovir exerted a strong synergism in anti-CMV activity. Mizoribine depletes guanosine nucleotides by inhibiting inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase and may increase the ratio of ganciclovir to guanosine in treated cells, resulting in a strong synergistic augmentation of the anti-CMV activity of ganciclovir. Two clinical isolates with UL97 mutations were less susceptible to mizoribine than the Towne strain but were equally susceptible in the presence of guanine. Two mizoribine-resistant strains were isolated after culture for 3 months with 100 μg/ml mizoribine, but they were as sensitive to ganciclovir as the parent Towne strain. The anti-CMV activity of mizoribine was antagonized by 2′-deoxyguanosine. Mizoribine inhibited CMV replication directly, and the sequence of mizoribine-resistant mutants of UL97 and UL54 was identical to that of the parent Towne strain, indicating the different anti-CMV action from ganciclovir, foscarnet, and maribavir. Mizoribine as an immunosuppressive and anti-CMV drug in the clinical regimen was suggested to suppress replication of CMV in vivo and control CMV infection in transplant recipients in combination with ganciclovir.

Efficacy of ASP2151, a helicase–primase inhibitor, against thymidine kinase-deficient herpes simplex virus type 2 infection in vitro and in vivo

ASP2151 was developed as a novel inhibitor of herpes simplex virus (HSV) and varicella-zoster virus helicase-primase. The anti-HSV activity of ASP2151 toward a clinical HSV isolate with acyclovir (ACV)-resistant/thymidine kinase (TK)-deficiency was characterized in vitro and in vivo using a plaque reduction assay and the ear pinna infection in mice. The IC(50) ranged from 0.018 to 0.024 μg/ml, indicating the susceptibility of TK-deficient HSV-2 was similar to that of wild-type HSV-2 strains. Anti-HSV activity of ASP2151 in vivo was evaluated in mice infected with wild-type HSV-2 and TK-deficient HSV-2. ASP2151 significantly reduced the copy numbers of wild-type HSV-2 and TK-deficient HSV-2 at the inoculation ear pinna, while valacyclovir significantly reduced the copy number of wild type HSV-2 but not that of TK-deficient HSV-2 in the inoculated ear pinna. Thus, ASP 2151 showed therapeutic efficacy in mice infected with both wild-type and TK-deficient HSV-2. In conclusion, ASP2151 is a promising novel herpes helicase-primase inhibitor that indicates the feasibility of ASP2151 for clinical application for the treatment of HSV infections, including ACV-resistant/TK-deficient HSV infection.

Characterization of a fully human monoclonal antibody against extracellular domain of matrix protein 2 of influenza A virus

The extra-cellular domain of the influenza virus matrix protein 2 (M2e) is highly conserved between influenza A virus strains compared to hemagglutinin and neuraminidase, and has long been viewed as a potential and universal vaccine target. M2e induces no or only weak and transient immune responses following infection, making it difficult to detect M2e-specific antibodies producing B-cells in human peripheral blood lymphocytes. Recently, using a single-cell manipulation method, immunospot array assay on a chip (ISAAC), we obtained an M2e-specific human antibody (Ab1-10) from the peripheral blood of a healthy volunteer. In this report, we have demonstrate that Ab1-10 reacted not only to seasonal influenza A viruses, but also to pandemic (H1N1) 2009 virus (2009 H1N1) and highly pathogenic avian influenza A virus, and that the antibody-bound M2e of 2009 H1N1 inactivated the virus with high affinity (∼10(-10)M). More importantly, it inhibited 2009 H1N1 viral propagation in vitro. These results suggest that Ab1-10 might be a potential candidate for antibody therapeutics for a wide range of influenza A viruses.