Differential effect of acute and persistent Junin virus infections on the nucleo-cytoplasmic trafficking and expression of heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) type A/B.

MAETO, CYNTHIA A.; KNOTT, MARÍA ELENA; LINERO, FLORENCIA; ELLENBERG, PAULA; SCOLARO, LUIS; CASTILLA, VIVIANA

JOURNAL OF GENERAL VIROLOGY

SOC GENERAL MICROBIOLOGY

Año: 2011 vol. 92 p. 2181 - 2190

0022-1317

Abstract Heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoproteins A/B (hnRNPs A/B), cellular RNA-binding proteins that participate in splicing, trafficking, translation and turnover of mRNAs, have been implicated in the life cycles of several RNA cytoplasmic viruses. Here we demonstrated that silencing of hnRNP A1 and A2 significantly reduced the replication of the arenavirus Junin (JUNV), the etiological agent of Argentine hemorrhagic fever. While acute JUNV infection did not modify total levels of hnRNP A/B expression in comparison with uninfected cells, non-cythopatic persistent infection exhibited low levels of these cell proteins. Furthermore, acutely infected cells showed a cytoplasmic relocalization of overexpressed hnRNP A1 probably related to the involvement of this protein in virus replicative cycle. This cytoplasmic accumulation was also observed in cells expressing viral nucleoprotein (N) and coimmunoprecipitation studies revealed the interaction between hnRNP A1 and N protein. By contrast, a predominantly nuclear distribution of overexpressed hnRNP A1 was found during persistent infection, even in the presence of endogenous or overexpressed N protein indicating a differential modulation of nucleo-cytoplasmic trafficking in JUNV acute and persistent infections.