Summary. -Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) attracts significant attention both as an important experimental model system to study acute and persistent viral infections, and as a neglected human pathogen of clinical significance. This review focuses on the basic aspects and recent advances in the molecular and cell biology of LCMV, the outcome of LCMV infection on its natural host with an emphasis on persistent infection and the outcome of LCMV infection in humans. Lastly, we summarize our contribution to current knowledge on LCM virus.Keywords: lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus; LCMV infection; persistent infection; MX strain * Corresponding author. E-mail: jana.tomaskova@savba.sk; phone: +421-2-50932439. Abbreviations: agRNA = antigenome RNA; α-DG = alpha-dystroglycan; DIP = defective interfering particles; ESCRT = endosomal sorting complex required for transport; GP = glycoprotein; GPC = glycoprotein precursor; IGR = intergenic region; IL-10 = interleukin 10; K1 = keratin 1; LAG-3 = lymphocyte-activation protein 3; LCMV = lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus; MHC = major histocompatibility complex; NP = nucleoprotein; PD-1 = programmed death-1; RNP = ribonucleoprotein; SSP = stable signal peptide; TIM-3 = T cell Ig-and mucin-domain-containing molecule 3; VHF = viral hemorrhagic fever
The physiological context of virus-infected cells can markedly affect multiplication and spread of the virus progeny. During persistent infection, the virus exploits the host cell without disturbing its vital functions. However, microenvironmental hypoxia can uncouple this intimate relationship and escalate virus pathogenesis. Accumulating evidence suggests that hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) modulates gene expression of the viruses that pass through a DNA stage, contain hypoxia-responsive promoter elements, and replicate in the nucleus. Here we show that hypoxia can influence the gene expression and transmission of the cytoplasmic RNA virus lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV), which is a neglected human pathogen and teratogen. The MX strain of LCMV, which we used as a model, replicates in a persistent mode in human HeLa cells, fails to produce mature envelope glycoproteins, and spreads through cell-cell contacts in the absence of extracellular infectious virions. Both exposure of MX-infected HeLa cells to chronic hypoxia and gene transfer approaches led to increased virus RNA transcription and higher levels of the viral proteins via a HIFdependent mechanism. Moreover, hypoxia enhanced the formation of infectious virions capable of transmitting LCMV by cell-free medium. This LCMV "reactivation" might have health-compromising consequences in hypoxia-associated situations, such as fetal development and ischemia-related pathologies.The prototypic arenavirus lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) provides an important model for investigations of the mechanisms of viral persistence and pathogenesis. Studies using this model led to major advances in virology and immunology that apply universally to other viral and microbial infections of humans (5,7,43,45). Even though LCMV infections are mostly asymptomatic and often remain unnoticed, compelling evidence indicates that LCMV is a neglected human pathogen of clinical significance, especially in cases of congenital infections leading to an increased risk of spontaneous abortion or central nervous system (CNS) disorders and chorioretinitis (3,4,17,44). Moreover, LCMV poses a special threat to immunocompromised individuals, as tragically illustrated by recent cases of transplant-associated infections by LCMV with fatal outcomes in the United States (13) and Australia (25). LCMV has a bisegmented single-stranded RNA genome and a life cycle confined to the cell cytoplasm. The genome consists of a small segment (S) (3.4 kb) and a large segment (L) (7.2 kb). Each genomic segment uses an ambisense coding strategy to direct the synthesis of two polypeptides from two opposite open reading frames separated by an intergenic region. The S segment encodes a major viral protein nucleoprotein (NP) and a glycoprotein precursor (GPC), which is posttranslationally cleaved into peripheral glycoprotein 1 (GP1) and transmembrane glycoprotein 2 (GP2). The L segment encodes a viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (L) and a small regulatory RING domain-containing Z protein (Z) (6, 42). S...
Dexamethasone is a synthetic glucocorticoid frequently used to suppress side-effects of anticancer chemotherapy. In the present study, we showed that dexamethasone treatment leads to concentration-dependent downregulation of cancer-associated marker, carbonic anhydrase IX (CA IX), at the level of promoter activity, mRNA and protein expression in 2D and 3D cancer cell models. The effect of dexamethasone on CA IX expression under hypoxic conditions is predominantly mediated by impaired transcriptional activity and decreased protein level of the main hypoxic transcription factor HIF-1α. In addition, CA9 downregulation can be caused by protein-protein interactions between activated glucocorticoid receptors, major effectors of glucocorticoid action, and transcription factors that trigger CA9 transcription (e.g. AP-1). Moreover, we identified a potential NF-κB binding site in the CA9 promoter and propose the involvement of NF-κB in the dexamethasone-mediated inhibition of CA9 transcription. As high level of CA IX is often linked to aggressive tumor behavior, poor prognosis and chemo- and radiotherapy resistance, uncovering its reduction after dexa-methasone treatment and implication of additional regulatory mechanisms can be relevant for the CA IX-related clinical applications.
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