Molecular analysis of baculovirus regulatory factors involved in viral gene expression, replication, and assembly

参与病毒基因表达、复制和组装的杆状病毒调控因子的分子分析

• 批准号: 138600-2009
• 负责人: Theilmann, David
• 金额: $ 2.91万
• 依托单位: University of British Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2011-01-01 至 2012-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=475872
• 关键词: Molecular; analysis; baculovirus; regulatory; factors

Baculoviruses are large DNA viruses that are specific for arthropods. They have been developed as environmentally sustainable insect control agents, highly successful protein expression vectors and more recently as human gene therapy vectors. They are also excellent model systems for the investigation of eukaryotic gene regulation and mechanisms of viral replication. Baculoviruses contain large genomes that code for many genes and a coordinated expression of the genome is needed to enable these viruses to infect and kill cells. Correct expression of the viral genes requires the action of pivotal viral regulatory genes which are the primary coordinators of viral gene expression and are also required for viral DNA replication. The primary objectives of this study are to understand how viral regulatory proteins work at the molecular level. Correct expression of regulatory proteins is essential to ensure a normal infection and their activities are directly related to viral virulence and host range. This study is also investigating genes specifically required for production of the form of virus which causes spread of an infection from tissue to tissue in diseased insects. Very little is known about how baculoviruses get out of infected cells but we are characterizing at a molecular level viral proteins that may be involved interacting with the cellular structures to facilitate viral transmission. The fundamental knowledge obtained form these studies on how viruses infect and kill cells can be applied to many areas of biology including human medicine. In addition, these investigations could lead to improved environmentally sustainable insect control agents and potentially enhanced protein expression and gene therapy vectors.

杆状病毒是节肢动物特有的大型DNA病毒。 它们已被开发为环境可持续的昆虫控制剂，非常成功的蛋白质表达载体，最近作为人类基因治疗载体。 它们也是研究真核基因调控和病毒复制机制的极好模型系统。杆状病毒含有编码许多基因的大基因组，并且需要基因组的协调表达以使这些病毒能够感染和杀死细胞。 病毒基因的正确表达需要关键病毒调节基因的作用，所述关键病毒调节基因是病毒基因表达的主要协调者，并且也是病毒DNA复制所需的。 本研究的主要目的是了解病毒调节蛋白在分子水平上的工作方式。调控蛋白的正确表达是保证病毒正常感染的必要条件，其活性与病毒毒力和宿主范围直接相关。 这项研究还调查了产生病毒形式所需的特定基因，这种病毒导致感染在患病昆虫的组织间传播。关于杆状病毒如何从感染的细胞中出来的知之甚少，但我们正在分子水平上表征病毒蛋白质，这些蛋白质可能与细胞结构相互作用以促进病毒传播。 从这些关于病毒如何感染和杀死细胞的研究中获得的基本知识可以应用于包括人类医学在内的许多生物学领域。 此外，这些研究可能会导致改善环境可持续的昆虫控制剂和潜在的增强蛋白质表达和基因治疗载体。