Cellular production of a counterfeit viral protein confers immunity to infection by a related virus

DNA copies of many non-retroviral RNA virus genes or portions thereof (NIRVs) are present in the nuclear genomes of many eukaryotes. These have often been preserved for millions of years of evolution, suggesting that they play an important cellular function. One possible function is resistance to in...

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Published in:PeerJ (San Francisco, CA) Vol. 6; p. e5679
Main Authors: Warner, Benjamin E., Ballinger, Matthew J., Yerramsetty, Pradeep, Reed, Jennifer, Taylor, Derek J., Smith, Thomas J., Bruenn, Jeremy A.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States PeerJ, Inc 28.09.2018
PeerJ Inc
Subjects:
Amino acids
Capsid protein
Capsids
Codons
Complementation
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Disease resistance
DNA
E coli
Endogenous non-retroviral RNA virus
Evolutionary biology
Evolutionary Studies
Fungi
Gene expression
Genomes
Genomics
Infections
Mammals
Microbiology
Molecular Biology
Mycology
Mycovirus
NIRV
Polypeptides
Proteins
RNA polymerase
RNA viruses
Totivirus
Viral infections
Virology
Viruses
United States > US
Mycovirus
NIRV
Totivirus
Endogenous non-retroviral RNA virus
ISSN:2167-8359, 2167-8359
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:DNA copies of many non-retroviral RNA virus genes or portions thereof (NIRVs) are present in the nuclear genomes of many eukaryotes. These have often been preserved for millions of years of evolution, suggesting that they play an important cellular function. One possible function is resistance to infection by related viruses. In some cases, this appears to occur through the piRNA system, but in others by way of counterfeit viral proteins encoded by NIRVs. In the fungi, NIRVs may be as long as 1,400 uninterrupted codons. In one such case in the yeast Debaryomyces hansenii , one of these genes provides immunity to a related virus by virtue of expression of a counterfeit viral capsid protein, which interferes with assembly of viral capsids by negative complementation. The widespread occurrence of non-retroviral RNA virus genes in eukaryotes may reflect an underappreciated method of host resistance to infection. This work demonstrates for the first time that an endogenous host protein encoded by a gene that has been naturally acquired from a virus and fixed in a eukaryote can interfere with the replication of a related virus and do so by negative complementation.
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ISSN:2167-8359
2167-8359
DOI:10.7717/peerj.5679