Translation from the German:
Production of leukemia virus-infected protein influences the production of retroviruses.
Key to the life cycle of a retrovirus is its replication in the host cell. Now German scientists have discovered that for the mouse leukemia virus (MLV), a protein involved in the production of virus is significantly involved. They present their results in the current issue of Virology Journal. This discovery is important for the development of therapeutic approaches because mouse retroviruses are frequently used in less dangerous forms of gene therapy.
The mouse leukemia virus (MLV) is one of the gamma-retroviruses, which carry single-stranded RNA as genetic material. If a cell is infected by such a virus, the RNA is first transcribed into DNA and incorporated into the genome of the host. Now the cell is forced to produce not only the foreign RNA to reproduce, but also the corresponding viral envelopes. Finally, new infectious virus particles are released gradually from the host cell.
Cellular protein plays key role
The study of these so-called late processes has experienced a special boost in recent years because of new findings on the viral and the cellular side," said Dr. Manfred Wirth from the Working Group on Epigenetic regulation mechanisms. At the center of scientific interest are the cellular targets for therapeutic purposes. "In this context, we showed that caveolin-1, a multifunctional, membrane-associated, cellular protein, plays a crucial role in the maturation of murine leukemia virus." Said Wirth.
"It turned out that a viral protein Caveolin-1 facilitates the docking to the cell membrane. From there, newly assembled viruses then leave the cell. "The places where these budding swim takes place, when cholesterol-rich rafts in the plasma membrane. Interestingly, this is true not only for the group of gamma retroviruses. "It seems this is a general mechanism acting to the advantage perhaps of other viral families for their purposes, including some viruses that cause human diseases."
Understanding these basic processes during the replication of retroviruses - their entry into the target cell, their integration into the host genome, the multiplication of the viral components, assembly, and their exit from the host cell - is of crucial importance both for the development of therapeutic approaches and for the further development of retroviral vectors for gene transfer. Mouse retroviruses are frequently used in less dangerous form of gene therapy.