Cooperativity among herpes simplex virus type 1 immediate-early regulatory proteins: ICP4 and ICP27 affect the intracellular localization of ICP0

Characterization of polyclonal antibodies to Herpes Simplex Virus types 1 and 2

Infections with herpes simplex virus (HSV) types 1 and 2 have been linked to oral, facial, genital lesions, as well as some visceral organ changes in patients under immunosuppressed conditions. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) with HSV antibodies is used for identification of the viruses in tissue samples. In this study, two polyclonal antibodies, prepared separately with HSV-1 and HSV-2 immunogens, were characterized in comparison to a monoclonal antibody to HSV-1 (10A3). The polyclonal anti-HSV-1 and monoclonal antibody 10A3 were shown to be reactive to viral proteins of both HSV-1 and HSV-2 on Western blots, while the polyclonal anti-HSV-2 was reactive to HSV-2 proteins, but not to those of HSV-1. Cross-reactivity was not observed to proteins of six other frequently encountered herpes viruses. IHC characterization was performed on 29 cases of HSV-infected tissue samples, 61 samples infected with other herpes viruses and 35 samples without known infection. By IHC, the polyclonal anti-HSV-1 and a monoclonal antibody 10A3 exhibited a signal, mainly in a nuclear pattern, in all of the HSV-infected samples and not in other tissue types. A positive signal, mainly in the cytoplasm, was identified with the polyclonal anti-HSV-2 in 21 of the 29 HSV-infected samples. Genotyping analysis was successful in 14 of the HSV-infected samples, with IHC HSV-2 positivity correlative to the HSV-2 genotype. The results demonstrate that these antibodies are useful tools for identification of HSV-1 and HSV-2, and their combinatorial application may help to distinguish between these two types of infection.

The ATM and Rad3-Related (ATR) Protein Kinase Pathway Is Activated by Herpes Simplex Virus 1 and Required for Efficient Viral Replication

The ATM and Rad3-related (ATR) protein kinase and its downstream effector Chk1 are key sensors and organizers of the DNA damage response (DDR) to a variety of insults. Previous studies of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) showed no evidence for activation of the ATR pathway. Here we demonstrate that both Chk1 and ATR were phosphorylated by 3 h postinfection (h.p.i.). Activation of ATR and Chk1 was observed using 4 different HSV-1 strains in multiple cell types, while a specific ATR inhibitor blocked activation. Mechanistic studies point to early viral gene expression as a key trigger for ATR activation. Both pATR and pChk1 localized to the nucleus within viral replication centers, or associated with their periphery, by 3 h.p.i. Significant levels of pATR and pChk1 were also detected in the cytoplasm, where they colocalized with ICP4 and ICP0. Proximity ligation assays confirmed that pATR and pChk1 were closely and specifically associated with ICP4 and ICP0 in both the nucleus and cytoplasm by 3 h.p.i., but not with ICP8 or ICP27, presumably in a multiprotein complex. Chemically distinct ATR and Chk1 inhibitors blocked HSV-1 replication and infectious virion production, while inhibitors of ATM, Chk2, and DNA-dependent protein kinase (DNA-PK) did not. Together our data show that HSV-1 activates the ATR pathway at early stages of infection and that ATR and Chk1 kinase activities play important roles in HSV-1 replication fitness. These findings indicate that the ATR pathway may provide insight for therapeutic approaches.IMPORTANCE Viruses have evolved complex associations with cellular DNA damage response (DDR) pathways, which sense troublesome DNA structures formed during infection. The first evidence for activation of the ATR pathway by HSV-1 is presented. ATR is activated, and its downstream target Chk1 is robustly phosphorylated, during early stages of infection. Both activated proteins are found in the nucleus associated with viral replication compartments and in the cytoplasm associated with viral proteins. We also demonstrate that both ATR and Chk1 kinase activities are important for viral replication. The findings suggest that HSV-1 activates ATR and Chk1 during early stages of infection and utilizes the enzymes to promote its own replication. The observation may be exploitable for antiviral approaches.

Characterization of Elements Regulating the Nuclear-to-Cytoplasmic Translocation of ICP0 in Late Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Infection

Infected cell protein 0 (ICP0) of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) is an immediate early protein containing a RING-type E3 ubiquitin ligase. It targets several host factors for proteasomal degradation and subsequently activates viral expression. ICP0 has a nuclear localization sequence and functions in the nucleus early during infection. However, later in infection, ICP0 is found solely in the cytoplasm. The molecular mechanism and biological function of the ICP0 nuclear-to-cytoplasmic translocation are not well understood. In this study, we sought to characterize elements important for this translocation. We found that (i) in human embryonic lung fibroblast (HEL) cells, ICP0 C-terminal residues 741 to 775 were necessary but not sufficient for the nuclear-to-cytoplasmic translocation; (ii) the loss of ICP0 E3 ubiquitin ligase activity, which led to defective viral replication in nonpermissive cells, also caused mutant ICP0 to be retained in the nucleus of HEL cells; (iii) in permissive U2OS cells, however, ICP0 lacking E3 ligase activity was translocated to the cytoplasm at a pace faster than that of wild-type ICP0, suggesting that nuclear retention of ICP0 occurs in an ICP0 E3 ligase-dependent manner; and (iv) the ICP0 C terminus and late viral proteins cooperate in order to overcome nuclear retention and stimulate ICP0 cytoplasmic translocation. Taken together, less ICP0 nuclear retention may contribute to the permissiveness of U2OS cells to HSV-1 in the absence of functional ICP0.IMPORTANCE A distinct characteristic for eukaryotes is the compartmentalization of cell metabolic pathways, which allows greater efficiency and specificity of cellular functions. ICP0 of HSV-1 is a multifunctional viral protein that travels through different compartments as infection progresses. Its main regulatory functions are carried out in the nucleus, but it is translocated to the cytoplasm late during HSV-1 infection. To understand the biological significance of cytoplasmic ICP0 in HSV-1 infection, we investigated the potential players involved in this nuclear-to-cytoplasmic translocation. We found that there is a nuclear retention force in an ICP0 E3 ubiquitin ligase-dependent manner. In addition, we identified the C terminus of ICP0 as a cis element cooperating with late viral proteins to overcome the nuclear retention and stimulate the nuclear-to-cytoplasmic translocation of ICP0.

Viral Ubiquitin Ligase Stimulates Selective Host MicroRNA Expression by Targeting ZEB Transcriptional Repressors

Infection with herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1) brings numerous changes in cellular gene expression. Levels of most host mRNAs are reduced, limiting synthesis of host proteins, especially those involved in antiviral defenses. The impact of HSV-1 on host microRNAs (miRNAs), an extensive network of short non-coding RNAs that regulate mRNA stability/translation, remains largely unexplored. Here we show that transcription of the miR-183 cluster (miR-183, miR-96, and miR-182) is selectively induced by HSV-1 during productive infection of primary fibroblasts and neurons. ICP0, a viral E3 ubiquitin ligase expressed as an immediate-early protein, is both necessary and sufficient for this induction. Nuclear exclusion of ICP0 or removal of the RING (really interesting new gene) finger domain that is required for E3 ligase activity prevents induction. ICP0 promotes the degradation of numerous host proteins and for the most part, the downstream consequences are unknown. Induction of the miR-183 cluster can be mimicked by depletion of host transcriptional repressors zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1)/-crystallin enhancer binding factor 1 (δEF1) and zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 2 (ZEB2)/Smad-interacting protein 1 (SIP1), which we establish as new substrates for ICP0-mediated degradation. Thus, HSV-1 selectively stimulates expression of the miR-183 cluster by ICP0-mediated degradation of ZEB transcriptional repressors.

Functional comparison of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) and HSV-2 ICP27 homologs reveals a role for ICP27 in virion release

Numerous studies have focused on the regulatory functions of ICP27, an immediate-early (IE) protein of herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1). However, its homolog in HSV-2, termed ICP27t2, has been little studied. Here, we used two different approaches to functionally compare ICP27t2 and ICP27. In transfection-based assays, ICP27t2 closely resembled ICP27 in its capacity to enhance HSV-1 late gene expression, suppress the splicing of a viral intron, and complement the growth of an HSV-1 ICP27 null mutant. To study ICP27t2 in the context of viral infection, we engineered K2F1, an HSV-1 mutant that encodes ICP27t2 in place of ICP27. In Vero cells, K2F1 replicated with wild-type (WT) kinetics and yields, expressed delayed-early and late proteins normally, and was fully capable of activating several cellular signal transduction pathways that are ICP27 dependent. Thus, we conclude that ICP27t2 and ICP27 are functionally very similar and that ICP27t2 can mediate all ICP27 activities that are required for HSV-1 replication in cell culture. Surprisingly, however, we found that K2F1 forms plaques that are morphologically different from those of WT HSV-1. Investigation of this trait demonstrated that it results from the decreased release of progeny virions into the culture medium. This appears to be due to a reduction in the detachment of K2F1 progeny from the extracellular surface of the infected cell. We identified two HSV-1 ICP27 amino-terminal deletion mutants with a similar release defect. Together, these results demonstrate that ICP27 plays a heretofore-unappreciated role in modulating the efficiency of progeny virion release.

IMPORTANCE

ICP27 is an essential, multifunctional regulatory protein that has a number of critical roles in the HSV-1 life cycle. Although ICP27 homologs are encoded by all known members of the Herpesviridae, previous work with several of these homologs has shown that they cannot substitute for ICP27 in the context of HSV-1-infected cells. Here, we identify ICP27t2 as the first homolog that can efficiently replace ICP27 in HSV-1 infection. Unexpectedly, our results also reveal that the sequence of the ICP27 gene can affect the release of HSV-1 progeny virions from the infected cell. Thus, our comparative study has revealed a novel function for ICP27 in the regulation of virus release.

Novel roles of cytoplasmic ICP0: proteasome-independent functions of the RING finger are required to block interferon-stimulated gene production but not to promote viral replication

The immediate-early protein ICP0 from herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) plays pleiotropic roles in promoting viral lytic replication and reactivation from latency. Most of the known actions of ICP0 occur in the nucleus and are thought to involve the E3 ubiquitin ligase activity of its RING finger domain, which targets proteins for degradation via the proteasome. Although ICP0 translocates to the cytoplasm as the infection progresses, little is known about its activities in this location. Here, we show that cytoplasmic ICP0 has two distinct functions. In primary cell cultures and in an intravaginal mouse model, cytoplasmic ICP0 promotes viral replication in the absence of an intact RING finger domain. Additionally, ICP0 blocks the activation of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3), a key transcription factor of the innate antiviral response, in a mechanism that requires the RING finger domain but not the proteasome. To our knowledge, this is the first observation of a proteasome-independent function of the RING finger domain of ICP0. Collectively, these results underscore the importance of cytoplasm-localized ICP0 and the diverse nature of its activities. Importance: Despite ICP0 being a well-studied viral protein, the significance of its cytoplasmic localization has been largely overlooked. This is, in part, because common experimental manipulations result in the restriction of ICP0 to the nucleus. By overcoming this constraint, we both further characterize the ability of cytoplasmic ICP0 to inhibit antiviral signaling and show that ICP0 at this site has unexpected activities in promoting viral replication. This demonstrates the importance of considering location when analyzing protein function and adds a new perspective to our understanding of this multifaceted protein.

Analysis of herpes simplex virion tegument ICP4 derived from infected cells and ICP4-expressing cells

ICP4 is the major transcriptional regulatory protein of herpes simplex virus (HSV). It is expressed in infected cells with immediate early kinetics and is essential for viral growth. ICP4 is also a structural component of the virion tegument layer. Herpesviral tegument proteins exert regulatory functions important for takeover of the host cell. Tegument ICP4 has not been well characterized. We examined the ICP4 present in HSV-1 virions that were either derived from wild type infected cells or from ICP4-expressing (E5) cells infected with ICP4 deletion virus d120. Limited proteolysis demonstrated that virion-associated ICP4 from particles derived from E5 cells was indeed an internal component of the virion. A similar subset of virion structural proteins was detected in viral particles regardless of the cellular origin of ICP4. Genotypically ICP4-negative virions complemented with tegument ICP4 entered cells via a proteasome-dependent, pH-dependent pathway similar to wild type virions. In infected cells, ICP4 was distributed predominantly in intranuclear replication compartments regardless of whether it was expressed from a transgene or from the HSV genome.

Herpes simplex virus 1 VP22 regulates translocation of multiple viral and cellular proteins and promotes neurovirulence

Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) protein VP22, encoded by the UL49 gene, is a major virion tegument protein. In the present study, we showed that VP22 was required for efficient redistribution of viral proteins VP16, VP26, ICP0, ICP4, and ICP27 and of cellular protein Hsc-70 to the cytoplasm of infected cells. We found that two dileucine motifs in VP22, at amino acids 235 and 236 and amino acids 251 and 252, were necessary for VP22 regulation of the proper cytoplasmic localization of these viral and cellular proteins. The dileucine motifs were also required for proper cytoplasmic localization of VP22 itself and for optimal expression of viral proteins VP16, VP22, ICP0, UL41, and glycoprotein B. Interestingly, a recombinant mutant virus with alanines substituted for the dileucines at amino acids 251 and 252 had a 50% lethal dose (LD(50)) for neurovirulence in mice following intracerebral inoculation about 10(3)-fold lower than the LD(50) of the repaired virus. Furthermore, the replication and spread of this mutant virus in the brains of mice following intracerebral inoculation were significantly impaired relative to those of the repaired virus. The ability of VP22 to regulate the localization and expression of various viral and cellular proteins, as shown in this study, was correlated with an increase in viral replication and neurovirulence in the experimental murine model. Thus, HSV-1 VP22 is a significant neurovirulence factor in vivo.

HSV-1 Cgal+ infection promotes quaking RNA binding protein production and induces nuclear-cytoplasmic shuttling of quaking I-5 isoform in human hepatoma cells

Herpesvirus type 1 (HSV-1) based oncolytic vectors arise as a promising therapeutic alternative for neoplastic diseases including hepatocellular carcinoma. However, the mechanisms mediating the host cell response to such treatments are not completely known. It is well established that HSV-1 infection induces functional and structural alterations in the nucleus of the host cell. In the present work, we have used gel-based and shotgun proteomic strategies to elucidate the signaling pathways impaired in the nucleus of human hepatoma cells (Huh7) upon HSV-1 Cgal(+) infection. Both approaches allowed the identification of differential proteins suggesting impairment of cell functions involved in many aspects of host-virus interaction such as transcription regulation, mRNA processing, and mRNA splicing. Based on our proteomic data and additional functional studies, cellular protein quaking content (QKI) increases 4 hours postinfection (hpi), when viral immediate-early genes such as ICP4 and ICP27 could be also detected. Depletion of QKI expression by small interfering RNA results in reduction of viral immediate-early protein levels, subsequent decrease in early and late viral protein content, and a reduction in the viral yield indicating that QKI directly interferes with viral replication. In particular, HSV-1 Cgal(+) induces a transient increase in quaking I-5 isoform (QKI-5) levels, in parallel with an enhancement of p27(Kip1) protein content. Moreover, immunofluorescence microscopy showed an early nuclear redistribution of QKI-5, shuttling from the nucleus to the cytosol and colocalizing with nectin-1 in cell to cell contact regions at 16-24 hpi. This evidence sheds new light on mechanisms mediating hepatoma cell response to HSV-1 vectors highlighting QKI as a central molecular mediator.

Definition of herpes simplex virus type 1 helper activities for adeno-associated virus early replication events

The human parvovirus Adeno-Associated Virus (AAV) type 2 can only replicate in cells co-infected with a helper virus, such as Adenovirus or Herpes Simplex Virus type 1 (HSV-1); whereas, in the absence of a helper virus, it establishes a latent infection. Previous studies demonstrated that the ternary HSV-1 helicase/primase (HP) complex (UL5/8/52) and the single-stranded DNA-Binding Protein (ICP8) were sufficient to induce AAV-2 replication in transfected cells. We independently showed that, in the context of a latent AAV-2 infection, the HSV-1 ICP0 protein was able to activate rep gene expression. The present study was conducted to integrate these observations and to further explore the requirement of other HSV-1 proteins during early AAV replication steps, i.e. rep gene expression and AAV DNA replication. Using a cellular model that mimics AAV latency and composite constructs coding for various sets of HSV-1 genes, we first confirmed the role of ICP0 for rep gene expression and demonstrated a synergistic effect of ICP4 and, to a lesser extent, ICP22. Conversely, ICP27 displayed an inhibitory effect. Second, our analyses showed that the effect of ICP0, ICP4, and ICP22 on rep gene expression was essential for the onset of AAV DNA replication in conjunction with the HP complex and ICP8. Third, and most importantly, we demonstrated that the HSV-1 DNA polymerase complex (UL30/UL42) was critical to enhance AAV DNA replication to a significant level in transfected cells and that its catalytic activity was involved in this process. Altogether, this work represents the first comprehensive study recapitulating the series of early events taking place during HSV-1-induced AAV replication.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP27 regulates expression of a variant, secreted form of glycoprotein C by an intron retention mechanism

We previously showed that herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) immediate-early (IE) protein ICP27 can posttranscriptionally stimulate mRNA accumulation from a transfected viral late gene encoding glycoprotein C (gC) (K. D. Perkins, J. Gregonis, S. Borge, and S. A. Rice, J. Virol. 77:9872-9884, 2003). We began this study by asking whether ICP27 homologs from other herpesviruses can also mediate this activity. Although the homologs from varicella-zoster virus (VZV) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) were inactive, the homolog from bovine herpesvirus 4 (BHV-4), termed HORF1/2, was a very efficient transactivator. Surprisingly, most of the mRNA produced via HORF1/2 transactivation was 225 nucleotides shorter than expected due to the removal of a previously undescribed intron from the gC transcript. We found that the gC mRNA produced in the absence of transactivation was also mostly spliced. In contrast, gC mRNA produced by ICP27 transactivation was predominantly unspliced. Based on these results, we conclude that ICP27 has two distinct effects on the transfected gC gene: it (i) stimulates mRNA accumulation and (ii) promotes the retention of an intron. Interestingly, the spliced transcript encodes a variant of gC that lacks its transmembrane domain and is secreted from transfected cells. As the gC splicing signals are conserved among several HSV-1 strains, we investigated whether the variant gC is expressed during viral infection. We report here that both the spliced transcript and its encoded protein are readily detected in Vero cells infected with three different laboratory strains of wild-type HSV-1. Moreover, the variant gC is efficiently secreted from infected cells. We have designated this alternate form of the protein as gCsec. As the extracellular domain of gC is known to bind heparan sulfate-containing proteoglycans and to inhibit the complement cascade via an interaction with complement component C3b, we speculate that gCsec could function as a secreted virulence factor.

Translocation and colocalization of ICP4 and ICP0 in cells infected with herpes simplex virus 1 mutants lacking glycoprotein E, glycoprotein I, or the virion host shutoff product of the UL41 gene

In wild-type herpes simplex virus 1-infected cells, the major regulatory protein ICP4 resides in the nucleus whereas ICP0 becomes dynamically associated with proteasomes and late in infection is translocated and dispersed in the cytoplasm. Inhibition of proteasomal function results in retention or transport of ICP0 to the nucleus. We report that in cells infected with mutants lacking glycoprotein E (gE), glycoprotein I (gI), or the product of the U(L)41 gene, both ICP4 and ICP0 are translocated to the cytoplasm and coaggregate in small dense structures that, in the presence of proteasomal inhibitor MG132, also contain proteasomal components. Gold particle-conjugated antibody to ICP0 reacted in thin sections with dense protein aggregates in the cytoplasm of mutant virus-infected cells. Similar aggregates were present in the nuclei but not in the cytoplasm of wild-type virus-infected cells. Exposure of cells early in infection to MG132 does not result in retention of ICP0 as in wild-type virus-infected cells. The results suggest that the retention of ICP4 and ICP0 in the nucleus is a dynamic process that involves the function of other viral proteins that may include the Fc receptor formed by the gE/gI complex and is not merely the consequence of expression of a nuclear localization signal. It is noteworthy that in DeltaU(L)41-infected cells gE is retained in the trans-Golgi network and is not widely dispersed in cellular membranes.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 immediate-early protein ICP27 is required for efficient incorporation of ICP0 and ICP4 into virions

Early in infection, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) immediate-early (IE) proteins ICP0 and ICP4 localize to the nucleus, where they stimulate viral transcription. Later in infection, ICP0 and to a lesser extent ICP4 accumulate in the cytoplasm, but their biological role there is unknown. Previously, it was shown that the cytoplasmic localization of ICP0/4 requires the multifunctional IE protein ICP27, which is itself an activator of viral gene expression. Here, we identify a viral ICP27 mutant, d3-4, which is unable to efficiently localize ICP0 and ICP4 to the cytoplasm but which otherwise resembles wild-type HSV-1 in its growth and viral gene expression phenotypes. These results genetically separate the function of ICP27 that affects ICP0/4 localization from its other functions, which affect viral growth and gene expression. As both ICP0 and ICP4 are known to be minor virion components, we used d3-4 to test the hypothesis that the cytoplasmic localization of these proteins is required for their incorporation into viral particles. Consistent with this conjecture, d3-4 virions were found to lack ICP0 in their tegument and to have greatly reduced levels of ICP4. Thus, the cytoplasmic localization of ICP0 and ICP4 appears to be a prerequisite for the assembly of these important transcriptional regulatory proteins into viral particles. Furthermore, our results show that ICP27 plays a previously unrecognized role in determining the composition of HSV-1 virions.

ICP27-dependent resistance of herpes simplex virus type 1 to leptomycin B is associated with enhanced nuclear localization of ICP4 and ICP0

It was previously shown that herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is sensitive to leptomycin B (LMB), an inhibitor of nuclear export factor CRM1, and that a single methionine to threonine change at residue 50 (M50T) of viral immediate-early (IE) protein ICP27 can confer LMB resistance. In this work, we show that deletion of residues 21-63 from ICP27 can also confer LMB resistance. We further show that neither the M50T mutation nor the presence of LMB affects the nuclear shuttling activity of ICP27, suggesting that another function of ICP27 determines LMB resistance. A possible clue to this function emerged when it was discovered that LMB treatment of HSV-1-infected cells dramatically enhances the cytoplasmic accumulation of two other IE proteins, ICP0 and ICP4. This effect is completely dependent on ICP27 and is reversed in cells infected with LMB-resistant mutants. Moreover, LMB-resistant mutations in ICP27 enhance the nuclear localization of ICP0 and ICP4 even in the absence of LMB, and this effect can be discerned in transfected cells. Thus, the same amino (N)-terminal region of ICP27 that determines sensitivity to LMB also enhances ICP27's previously documented ability to promote the cytoplasmic accumulation of ICP4 and ICP0. We speculate that ICP27's effects on ICP4 and ICP0 may contribute to HSV-1 LMB sensitivity.

Herpes simplex virus ICP27 activation of stress kinases JNK and p38

We previously reported that herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) can activate the stress-activated protein kinases (SAPKs) p38 and JNK. In the present study, we undertook a comprehensive and comparative analysis of the requirements for viral protein synthesis in the activation of JNK and p38. Infection with the UL36 mutant tsB7 or with UV-irradiated virus indicated that both JNK and p38 activation required viral gene expression. Cycloheximide reversal or phosphonoacetic acid treatment of wild-type virus-infected cells as well as infection with the ICP4 mutant vi13 indicated that only the immediate-early class of viral proteins were required for SAPK activation. Infection with ICP4, ICP27, or ICP0 mutant viruses indicated that only ICP27 was necessary. Additionally, we determined that in the context of virus infection ICP27 was sufficient for SAPK activation and activation of the p38 targets Mnk1 and MK2 by infecting with mutants deleted for various combinations of immediate-early proteins. Specifically, the d100 (0-/4-) and d103 (4-/22-/47-) mutants activated p38 and JNK, while the d106 (4-/22-/27-/47-) and d107 (4-/27-) mutants did not. Finally, infections with a series of ICP27 mutants demonstrated that the functional domain of ICP27 required for activation was located in the region encompassing amino acids 20 to 65 near the N terminus of the protein and that the C-terminal transactivation activity of ICP27 was not necessary.

Identification of functional domains within the bICP0 protein encoded by bovine herpesvirus 1

It is believed that the bICP0 protein encoded by bovine herpesvirus 1 (BoHV-1) stimulates productive infection by activating viral gene expression. Like the other ICP0-like proteins encoded byalphaherpesvirinaesubfamily members, bICP0 contains a zinc RING finger near its amino terminus. The zinc RING finger of bICP0 activates viral transcription, stimulates productive infection, and is toxic to certain cell types. Apart from the zinc RING finger, bICP0 possesses little similarity to the herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP0 protein making it difficult to predict what regions of bICP0 are important. To begin to identify bICP0 functional domains that are not part of the zinc RING finger, a panel of transposon insertion mutants that span bICP0 was developed. A large domain spanning aa 78–256, and a separate domain that is at or near aa 457 was necessary for efficient transactivation of a simple promoter. Transposon insertion at aa 91 impaired bICP0 protein stability in transfected cells. Insertion of transposons into the acidic domain of bICP0 had little or no effect on transactivation of a simple promoter or protein expression suggesting this region does not play a major role in activating gene expression. Sequences near the C terminus (aa 607–676) contain a functional nuclear localization signal. Collectively, these studies indicated that bICP0 contains several important functional domains: (i) the zinc RING finger, (ii) two separate domains that activate transcription, and (iii) a C-terminal nuclear localization signal that is also necessary for efficient transactivation.

Phosphorylation site mutations affect herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP0 function

The herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) immediate-early (IE) regulatory protein infected-cell protein 0 (ICP0) is a strong and global transactivator of both viral and cellular genes. In a previous study, we reported that ICP0 is highly phosphorylated and contains at least seven distinct phosphorylation signals as determined by phosphotryptic peptide mapping (D. J. Davido et al., J. Virol. 76:1077-1088, 2002). Since phosphorylation affects the activities of many viral regulatory proteins, we sought to determine whether the phosphorylation of ICP0 affects its functions. To address this question, it was first necessary to identify the regions of ICP0 that are phosphorylated. For this purpose, ICP0 was partially purified, and phosphorylation sites were mapped by microcapillary high-pressure liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Three phosphorylated regions containing 11 putative phosphorylation sites, all within or adjacent to domains important for the transactivating activity of ICP0, were identified. The 11 sites were mutated to alanine as clusters in each of the three regions by site-directed mutagenesis, generating plasmids expressing mutant forms of ICP0: Phos 1 (four mutated sites), Phos 2 (three mutated sites), and Phos 3 (four mutated sites). One-dimensional phosphotryptic peptide analysis confirmed that the phosphorylation state of each Phos mutant form of ICP0 is altered relative to that of wild-type ICP0. In functional assays, the ICP0 phosphorylation site mutations affected the subcellular and subnuclear localization of ICP0, its ability to alter the staining pattern of the nuclear domain 10 (ND10)-associated protein PML, and/or its transactivating activity in Vero cells. Only mutations in Phos 1, however, impaired the ability of ICP0 to complement the replication of an ICP0 null mutant in Vero cells. This study thus suggests that phosphorylation is an important regulator of ICP0 function.

The differential requirement for cyclin-dependent kinase activities distinguishes two functions of herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP0

Herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) ICP0 directs the degradation of cellular proteins associated with nuclear structures called ND10, a function thought to be closely associated with its broad transactivating activity. Roscovitine (Rosco), an inhibitor of cyclin-dependent kinases (cdks), inhibits the replication of HSV-1, HSV-2, human cytomegalovirus, varicella-zoster virus, and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 by inhibiting specific steps or activities of viral regulatory proteins, indicating the broad and pleiotropic effects that cdks have on the replication of these viruses. We previously demonstrated that Rosco inhibits the transactivating activity of ICP0. In the present study, we asked whether Rosco also affects the ability of ICP0 to direct the degradation of ND10-associated proteins. For this purpose, WI-38 cells treated with cycloheximide (CHX) were mock infected or infected with wild-type HSV-1 or an ICP0(-) mutant (7134). After release from the CHX block, the infections were allowed to proceed for 2 h in the presence or absence of Rosco at a concentration known to inhibit ICP0's transactivating activity. The cells were then examined for the presence of ICP0 and selected ND10-associated antigens (promyelocytic leukemia antigen [PML], sp100, hDaxx, and NDP55) by immunofluorescence. Staining for the ND10-associated antigens was detected in </=20% of KOS-infected cells in the presence or absence of Rosco, demonstrating that Rosco-sensitive kinases are not required for ICP0's ability to direct the dispersal or degradation of these antigens. In contrast, >90% of 7134- and mock-infected cells stained positive for all ND10-associated antigens in the presence or absence of Rosco. Similar results were obtained with a non-ND10-associated antigen, DNA-PK(cs), a known target of ICP0-directed degradation. The results of the PML and DNA-PK(cs) immunofluorescence studies correlated with a decrease in the levels of these proteins as determined by Western blotting. Thus, the differential requirement for Rosco-sensitive cdk activities distinguishes ICP0's ability to direct the dispersal or degradation of cellular proteins from its transactivating activity.

Interaction of the equine herpesvirus 1 EICP0 protein with the immediate-early (IE) protein, TFIIB, and TBP may mediate the antagonism between the IE and EICP0 proteins

The equine herpesvirus 1 (EHV-1) immediate-early (IE) and EICP0 proteins are potent trans-activators of EHV-1 promoters; however, in transient-transfection assays, the IE protein inhibits the trans-activation function of the EICP0 protein. Assays with IE mutant proteins revealed that its DNA-binding domain, TFIIB-binding domain, and nuclear localization signal may be important for the antagonism between the IE and EICP0 proteins. In vitro interaction assays with the purified IE and EICP0 proteins indicated that these proteins interact directly. At late times postinfection, the IE and EICP0 proteins colocalized in the nuclei of infected equine cells. Transient-transfection assays showed that the EICP0 protein trans-activated EHV-1 promoters harboring only a minimal promoter region (TATA box and cap site), suggesting that the EICP0 protein trans-activates EHV-1 promoters by interactions with general transcription factor(s). In vitro interaction assays revealed that the EICP0 protein interacted directly with the basal transcription factors TFIIB and TBP and that the EICP0 protein (amino acids [aa] 143 to 278) mediated the interaction with aa 125 to 174 of TFIIB. Our unpublished data showed that the IE protein interacts with the same domain (aa 125 to 174) of TFIIB and with TBP. Taken together, these results suggested that interaction of the EICP0 protein with the IE protein, TFIIB, and TBP may mediate the antagonism between the IE and EICP0 proteins.

EHV-1 EICP22 protein sequences that mediate its physical interaction with the immediate-early protein are not sufficient to enhance the trans-activation activity of the IE protein

The early 293 amino acid EICP22 protein (EICP22P) of equine herpesvirus 1 localizes within the nucleus and functions as an accessory regulatory protein (J. Virol. 68 (1994) 4329). Transient transfection assays indicated that although the EICP22P by itself only minimally trans-activates EHV-1 promoters, the EICP22P functions synergistically with the immediate-early protein (IEP) to enhance expression of EHV-1 early genes (J. Virol. 71 (1997) 1004). We previously showed that the EICP22 protein enhances the DNA-binding activity of the EHV-1 IEP and that it also physically interacts with the IEP (J. Virol. 74 (2000) 1425). In this communication, we employed transient trans-activation assays utilizing EICP22P deletion mutants to address whether the sequences required for EICP22P-IEP physical interactions are essential for EICP22P's ability to interact synergistically with the IEP. Assays employing various classes of the EHV-1 promoters fused to the chloramphenicol acetyl-transferase (CAT) reporter gene indicated that: (1) neither full length nor any of the EICP22P mutants tested was able to overcome repression of the IE promoter elicited by the IEP, (2) the full-length EICP22P interacted synergistically with the IEP to trans-activate the early and late promoters tested, and (3) all of the EICP22P mutants, including those that were able to physically interact with IEP and itself, failed to function synergistically with the IEP to trans-activate representative EHV-1 early and late promoters. The results suggest that EICP22P sequences required for its interaction with the IE protein are not sufficient to mediate its synergistic effect on the trans-activation function of the IEP. The possible explanations as to why sequences in addition to those that mediate EICP22P-IEP interaction and EICP22P self-interactions are essential for the synergistic function of EICP22P are discussed.

The cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor roscovitine inhibits the transactivating activity and alters the posttranslational modification of herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP0

The cyclin-dependent kinase (cdk) inhibitor Roscovitine (Rosco) reduces transcription of herpes simplex virus early genes significantly, even in the presence of wild-type levels of immediate-early (IE) viral proteins, suggesting that the transactivating functions of IE proteins may require the activities of one or more Rosco-sensitive cdk (L. M. Schang, A. Rosenberg, and P. A. Schaffer, J. Virol. 73:2161-2172, 1999). Based on this observation, we sought to determine whether Rosco alters the transactivating activity and posttranslational modification state of the IE protein, infected cell protein 0 (ICP0), in KOS6beta-infected Vero cells. KOS6beta is a KOS-derived recombinant virus containing an ICP0-inducible ICP6 promoter::lacZ cassette. To monitor ICP0's transactivating activity, KOS6beta-infected cells were released from a cycloheximide (CHX)-mediated protein synthesis block into medium with or without Rosco, and beta-galactosidase activity was measured. Rosco inhibited the ability of ICP0 to transactivate the ICP6 promoter by 50-fold. This inhibition was shown not to be a consequence of inhibition of ICP6 basal promoter activity or aberrant nuclear localization of ICP0. Rosco also altered the electrophoretic mobility of a portion of ICP0 molecules derived from KOS-infected cells following reversal of a CHX block. Notably, however, Rosco had only a minimal effect on the phosphorylation state of ICP0. We conclude that ICP0's transactivating activity requires Rosco-sensitive cdks and hypothesize that these cdks regulate the functions of cellular enzymes which modify ICP0, and are, consequently, required for its transactivating activity. Thus, we propose that Rosco regulates ICP0's posttranslational state by mechanisms other than, or in addition to, phosphorylation.

Requirements for the nuclear-cytoplasmic translocation of infected-cell protein 0 of herpes simplex virus 1

Earlier studies have shown that wild-type infected-cell protein 0 (ICP0), a key herpes simplex virus regulatory protein, translocates from the nucleus to the cytoplasm of human embryonic lung (HEL) fibroblasts within several hours after infection (Y. Kawaguchi, R. Bruni, and B. Roizman, J. Virol. 71:1019-1024, 1997). Translocation of ICP0 was also observed in cells infected with the d120 mutant, in which both copies of the gene encoding ICP4, the major regulatory protein, had been deleted (V. Galvan, R. Brandimarti, J. Munger, and B. Roizman, J. Virol. 74:1931-1938, 2000). Furthermore, a mutant (R7914) carrying the D199A substitution in ICP0 does not bind or stabilize cyclin D3 and is retained in the nucleus (C. Van Sant, P. Lopez, S. J. Advani, and B. Roizman, J. Virol. 75:1888-1898, 2001). Studies designed to elucidate the requirements for the translocation of ICP0 between cellular compartments revealed the following. (i) Translocation of ICP0 to the cytoplasm in productive infection maps to the D199 amino acid, inasmuch as wild-type ICP0 delivered in trans to cells infected with an ICP0 null mutant was translocated to the cytoplasm whereas the D199A-substituted mutant ICP0 was not. (ii) Translocation of wild-type ICP0 requires a function expressed late in infection, inasmuch as phosphonoacetate blocked the translocation of ICP0 in wild-type virus-infected cells but not in d120 mutant-infected cells. Moreover, whereas in d120 mutant-infected cells ICP0 was translocated rapidly from the cytoplasm to the nucleus at approximately 5 h after infection, the translocation of ICP0 in wild-type virus-infected cells extended from 5 to at least 9 h after infection. (iii) In wild-type virus-infected cells, the MG132 proteasomal inhibitor blocked the translocation of ICP0 to the cytoplasm early in infection, but when added late in infection, it caused ICP0 to be relocated back to the nucleus from the cytoplasm. (iv) MG132 blocked the translocation of ICP0 in d120 mutant-infected cells early in infection but had no effect on the ICP0 aggregated in vesicle-like structures late in infection. However, in d120 mutant-infected cells treated with MG132 at late times, proteasomes formed a shell-like structure around the aggregated ICP0. These structures were not seen in wild-type virus or R7914 mutant-infected cells. The results indicate the following. (i) In the absence of beta or gamma protein synthesis, ICP0 dynamically associates with proteasomes and is translocated to the cytoplasm. (ii) In cells productively infected beyond alpha gene expression, ICP0 is retained in the nucleus until after the onset of viral DNA synthesis and the synthesis of gamma2 proteins. (iii) Late in infection, ICP0 is actively sequestered in the cytoplasm by a process mediated by proteasomes, inasmuch as interference with proteasomal function causes rapid relocation of ICP0 to the nucleus.

The zinc ring finger in the bICP0 protein encoded by bovine herpesvirus-1 mediates toxicity and activates productive infection

The bICP0 protein encoded by bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1) is believed to activate transcription and consequently productive infection. Expression of full-length bICP0 protein is toxic in transiently transfected mouse neuroblastoma cells (neuro-2A) in the absence of other viral genes. However, bICP0 does not appear to directly induce apoptosis. Although bICP0 is believed to be functionally similar to the herpes simplex virus type 1-encoded ICP0, the only protein domain that is well conserved is a C3HC4 zinc ring finger located near the N terminus of both proteins. Site-specific mutagenesis of the zinc ring finger of bICP0 demonstrated that it was important for inducing aggregated chromatin structures in transfected cells and toxicity. The zinc ring finger was also required for stimulating productive infection in bovine cells and for trans-activating the thymidine kinase (TK) promoter of herpes simplex virus type 1. Deletion of amino acids spanning 356-677 of bICP0 altered subcellular localization of bICP0 and prevented trans-activation of the TK promoter. However, this deletion did not prevent trans-activation of the viral genome. Taken together, these studies indicated that bICP0 has several functional domains, including the zinc ring finger, which stimulate productive infection and influence cell survival.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP0 protein does not accumulate in the nucleus of primary neurons in culture

Infected-cell protein 0 (ICP0), the product of the herpes simplex virus (HSV) immediate-early (IE) alpha0 gene, is a promiscuous transactivator of viral early (E) and late (L) gene expression. HSV mutants lacking ICP0 function are severely deficient in viral growth and protein synthesis, particularly at low multiplicities of infection. Early in the infectious process in vitro, ICP0 protein accumulates in distinct domains within the nucleus to form characteristic structures active in the transcription of viral genes. However, following infection of primary trigeminal ganglion cells in vitro with a recombinant HSV mutant that expresses only ICP0, we observed that ICP0 protein accumulated in the characteristic intranuclear distribution only in the nuclei of Schwann cells; neurons in the culture did not accumulate ICP0 despite expression of ICP0 RNA in those cells. The same phenomenon was observed in PC12 cells differentiated to assume a neuronal phenotype. In primary neurons in culture, the amount of ICP0 protein could be increased by pharmacologic inhibition of calcium-activated protease (calpain) activity or by inhibition of protein phosphatase 2B (calcineurin). The failure of ICP0 protein to accumulate in the nucleus of neurons suggests that one mechanism which may impair efficient replication of the virus in neurons, and thus favor the establishment of viral latency in those cells, may be found in the cell-specific processing of that IE gene product.

Regulation of matrix attachment region-dependent, lymphocyte-restricted transcription through differential localization within promyelocytic leukemia nuclear bodies

Bright (B cell regulator of IgH transcription) transactivates the immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) intronic enhancer, Emicro, by binding to matrix attachment regions (MARs), sites necessary for DNA attachment to the nuclear matrix. Here we report that Bright interacts with the ubiquitous autoantigen Sp100, a component of promyelocytic leukemia nuclear bodies (PML NBs), and with LYSp100B/Sp140, the lymphoid-restricted homolog of Sp100. Both in intact cells and in nuclear matrix preparations, the majority of Bright and Sp100 colocalize within PML NBs. In contrast, Bright colocalizes with only a small fraction of LYSp100B while inducing a redistribution of the majority of LYSp100B from its associated nuclear domains (LANDs) into nucleoplasm and cytoplasm. Sp100 represses the MAR-binding and transactivation activity of Bright. LYSp100B interacts more weakly with Bright but requires significantly higher levels than Sp100 to inhibit MAR binding. However, it strongly stimulates Bright transactivation through E mu. We suggest that Sp100 and LYSp100B interactions with Bright have different consequences for IgH transcription, potentially through differential association of E mu MARs with nuclear matrix- associated PML NBs and LANDs.

Herpes simplex virus induces intracellular redistribution of E2F4 and accumulation of E2F pocket protein complexes

Accumulation of E2F-p107 and E2F-pRB DNA binding complexes occurred after herpes simplex virus infection of U2-OS cells. Accumulation of E2F-p107 also occurred by 4 h p.i. in C33 cells. This corresponded to a time when host DNA synthesis was reduced by 50%, and lagged by >/=1 h, the onset of viral DNA synthesis. To determine the basis for increased nuclear E2F complexes, we investigated the effects of virus infection on the intracellular distribution of the E2F-dependent DNA binding complexes and their protein constituents. Western blot analyses of whole cell extracts revealed that amounts of E2F4, E2F1, DP1, and p107 remained unchanged after infection of C33 cells. Analysis of cytoplasmic and nuclear fractions, however, revealed that cytoplasmic E2F4 decreased and nuclear E2F4 increased. This correlated with a loss of cytoplasmic E2F DNA-binding activity and a corresponding increase in nuclear DNA-binding activity. Concomitant with its redistribution, the apparent molecular weight of total and p107-associated E2F4 increased, at least partially as a result of protein phosphorylation. Increased nuclear E2F-pRB in U2-OS cells was accompanied by the conversion of pRB from a hyper- to a hypophosphorylated state. Infection of U2-OS cells with viral mutants indicated that viral protein IE ICP4 was necessary for the decrease in cytoplasmic E2F-p107, and that viral protein DE ICP8 was required for nuclear accumulation of p107-E2F. In contrast, ICP8 was not required for accumulation of E2F-pRB. These results indicate that the increase in E2F-p107 may be explained by the redistribution and modification of E2F4 and the increase in E2F-pRB by modification of pRB.

The host-cell architectural protein HMG I(Y) modulates binding of herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP4 to its cognate promoter

The productive infection cycle of herpes simplex virus is controlled in part by the action of ICP4, an immediate-early gene product that acts as both an activator and repressor of transcription. ICP4 is autoregulatory, and IE-3, the gene that encodes it, contains a high-affinity binding site for the protein at its cap site. Previously, we had demonstrated that this site could be occupied by proteins found in nuclear extracts from uninfected cells. A HeLa cell cDNA expression library was screened with a DNA probe containing the IE-3 gene cap site, and clones expressing the architectural chromatin proteins HMG I and HMG Y were identified by this technique. HMG I is shown to augment binding of ICP4 to its cognate site in in vitro assays and to enhance the activity of this protein in short-term transient expression assays.

How do animal DNA viruses get to the nucleus?

Genome and pre-genome replication in all animal DNA viruses except poxviruses occurs in the cell nucleus (Table 1). In order to reproduce, an infecting virion enters the cell and traverses through the cytoplasm toward the nucleus. Using the cell's own nuclear import machinery, the viral genome then enters the nucleus through the nuclear pore complex. Targeting of the infecting virion or viral genome to the multiplication site is therefore an essential process in productive viral infection as well as in latent infection and transformation. Yet little is known about how infecting genomes of animal DNA viruses reach the nucleus in order to reproduce. Moreover, this nuclear locus for viral multiplication is remarkable in that the sizes and composition of the infectious particles vary enormously. In this article, we discuss virion structure, life cycle to reproduce infectious particles, viral protein's nuclear import signal, and viral genome nuclear targeting.

Comparison of the intranuclear distributions of herpes simplex virus proteins involved in various viral functions

Herpesviral transcription, DNA synthesis, and capsid assembly occur within the infected cell nucleus. To further define the spatial relationship among these processes, we have examined the intranuclear distributions of viral DNA replication, gene regulatory, and capsid proteins using dual label immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy. We observed that several of the viral DNA replication proteins localize preferentially to punctate structures within replication compartments while the major transcriptional activator, ICP4, and the ICP27 regulatory protein show a more diffuse distribution within replication compartments. The viral proteins that show a punctate distribution in replication compartments redistribute from these compartments to prereplicative sites when viral DNA replication is inhibited, whereas viral proteins that show a diffuse distribution remain within replication compartments when viral DNA replication is inhibited. Thus the sites of viral DNA replication and late transcription appear to be distinct but codistribute within the boundaries of replication compartments. The major capsid protein, ICP5, also localizes initially to a diffuse distribution within replication compartments, but during the time of maximal progeny virus assembly, ICP5 becomes localized to punctate structures within replication compartments that are often near the punctate structures occupied by viral DNA replication proteins. Hence the processes of viral DNA replication, late transcription, and capsid assembly show a general overlapping distribution within replication compartments but appear to be located at distinct sites within these regions of the infected cell nucleus.

The NH2 terminus of the herpes simplex virus type 1 regulatory protein ICP0 contains a promoter-specific transcription activation domain

The transcriptional program of herpes simplex virus is regulated by the concerted action of three immediate-early (alpha) proteins, ICP4, ICP27, and ICP0. The experiments described in this study examine the role of the acidic amino terminus (amino acids 1 to 103) of ICP0 in gene activation. When tethered to a DNA binding domain, this sequence activates transcription in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Deletion of these amino acids affects the ability of ICP0 to activate alpha-gene promoter reporters in transient expression assays, while it has little or no effect on a beta- and a gamma-gene reporter in the same assay. Viruses that express the deleted form of ICP0 (ICP0-NX) have a small-plaque phenotype on both Vero cells and the complementing cell line L7. Transient expression and immunofluorescence analyses demonstrate that ICP0-NX is a dominant negative form of ICP0. Immunoprecipitation of ICP0 from cells coinfected with viruses expressing ICP0-NX and ICP0 revealed that ICP0 oligomerizes in infected cells. These data, in conjunction with the finding that ICP0-N/X is dominant negative, provide both biochemical and genetic evidence that ICP0 functions as a multimer in infected cells.

Two RING finger proteins, the oncoprotein PML and the arenavirus Z protein, colocalize with the nuclear fraction of the ribosomal P proteins

The promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein forms nuclear bodies which are relocated to the cytoplasm by the RNA virus lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV). The viral Z protein directly binds to PML and can relocate the nuclear bodies. Others have observed that LCMV virions may contain ribosomes; hence, we investigated the effects of infection on the distribution of ribosomal P proteins (P0, P1, and P2) with PML as a reference point. We demonstrate an association of PML bodies with P proteins by indirect immunofluorescence and coimmunoprecipitation experiments, providing the first evidence of nucleic acid-binding proteins associated with PML bodies. We show that unlike PML, the P proteins are not redistributed upon infection. Immunofluorescence and coimmunoprecipitation studies indicate that the viral Z protein binds the nuclear, but not the cytoplasmic, fraction of P0. The nuclear fraction of P0 has been associated with translationally coupled DNA excision repair and with nonspecific endonuclease activity; thus, P0 may be involved in nucleic acid processing activities necessary for LCMV replication. During the infection process, PML, P1, and P2 are downregulated but P0 remains unchanged. Further, P0 is present in virions while PML is not, indicating some selectivity in the assembly of LCMV.

An arenavirus RING (zinc-binding) protein binds the oncoprotein promyelocyte leukemia protein (PML) and relocates PML nuclear bodies to the cytoplasm

The promyelocytic leukemia protein (PML) forms nuclear bodies which are altered in some disease conditions. We report that the cytoplasmic RNA virus lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) influences the distribution of PML bodies. In cells infected with LCMV, the Z protein and PML form large bodies primarily in the cytoplasm. Transient transfection studies indicate that Z alone is sufficient to redistribute PML to the cytoplasm and that PML and Z colocalize. Coimmunoprecipitation studies show specific interaction between PML and Z proteins. A similar result was observed with a Z protein from another arenavirus, Lassa virus, suggesting that this is a general feature of the Arenaviridae. Genetically engineered mutations in PML were used to show that the Z protein binds the N-terminal region of PML and does not need the PML RING or the nuclear localization signal to colocalize. The Z protein acts dominantly to overcome the diffuse phenotype observed in several PML mutants. The interaction between PML and Z may influence certain unique characteristics of arenavirus infection.

Experimental investigation of herpes simplex virus latency

The clinical manifestations of herpes simplex virus infection generally involve a mild and localized primary infection followed by asymptomatic (latent) infection interrupted sporadically by periods of recrudescence (reactivation) where virus replication and associated cytopathologic findings are manifest at the site of initial infection. During the latent phase of infection, viral genomes, but not infectious virus itself, can be detected in sensory and autonomic neurons. The process of latent infection and reactivation has been subject to continuing investigation in animal models and, more recently, in cultured cells. The initiation and maintenance of latent infection in neurons are apparently passive phenomena in that no virus gene products need be expressed or are required. Despite this, a single latency-associated transcript (LAT) encoded by DNA encompassing about 6% of the viral genome is expressed during latent infection in a minority of neurons containing viral DNA. This transcript is spliced, and the intron derived from this splicing is stably maintained in the nucleus of neurons expressing it. Reactivation, which can be induced by stress and assayed in several animal models, is facilitated by the expression of LAT. Although the mechanism of action of LAT-mediated facilitation of reactivation is not clear, all available evidence argues against its involving the expression of a protein. Rather, the most consistent models of action involve LAT expression playing a cis-acting role in a very early stage of the reactivation process.

Formation of herpes simplex virus type 1 replication compartments by transfection: requirements and localization to nuclear domain 10

During infection, the seven essential herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) replication proteins are found in globular nuclear structures called replication compartments. Replication compartments form adjacent to ND10, nuclear matrix-bound domains which are present in most cell types but whose function is unknown (G. G. Maul, I. M. Ishov, and R. D. Everett, Virology 217:67-75, 1996). We now demonstrate that replication compartments can be formed by cotransfecting Vero cells with constructs expressing the seven essential viral replication proteins and a plasmid containing an HSV-1 origin of DNA replication. Like replication compartments in infected cells, replication compartments formed by cotransfection contain all of the essential viral replication proteins, are sites of DNA synthesis, and are found adjacent to ND10. However, neither the viral origin-binding protein nor a plasmid containing an HSV-1 origin of DNA replication is individually required for the formation of transfection replication compartments, although the presence of each increases the efficiency of replication compartment formation. Further, we provide evidence that UL29 independently localizes adjacent to ND10 and so may play a role in directing replication compartments to these preexisting nuclear structures.

Physical and functional interactions between herpes simplex virus immediate-early proteins ICP4 and ICP27

The ordered expression of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) genes, during the course of a productive infection, requires the action of the virus immediate-early regulatory proteins. Using a protein interaction assay, we demonstrate specific in vitro protein-protein interactions between ICP4 and ICP27, two immediate-early proteins of HSV-1 that are essential for virus replication. We map multiple points of contact between these proteins. Furthermore, by coimmunoprecipitation experiments, we demonstrate the following. (i) ICP4-ICP27 complexes are present in extracts from HSV-1 infected cells. (ii) ICP27 binds preferentially to less modified forms of ICP4, a protein that is extensively modified posttranslationally. We also demonstrate, by performing electrophoretic mobility shift assays and supershifts with monoclonal antibodies to ICP4 or ICP27, that both proteins are present in a DNA-protein complex with a noncanonical ICP4 binding site present in the HSV thymidine kinase (TK) gene. ICP4, in extracts from cells infected with ICP27-deficient viruses, is impaired in its ability to form complexes with the TK site but not with the canonical site from the alpha4 gene. However, ICP4 is able to form complexes with the TK probe, in the absence of ICP27, when overproduced in mammalian cells or expressed in bacteria. These data suggest that the inability of ICP4 from infected cell extracts to bind the TK probe in the absence of ICP27 does not reflect a requirement for the physical presence of ICP27 in the complex. Rather, they imply that ICP27 is likely to modulate the DNA binding activity of ICP4 by affecting its posttranslational modification status. Therefore, we propose that ICP27, in addition to its established role as a posttranscriptional regulator of virus gene expression, may also modulate transcription either through direct or indirect interactions with HSV regulatory regions, or through its ability to modulate the DNA binding activity of ICP4.

Mutational analysis of ICP0R, a transrepressor protein created by alternative splicing of the ICP0 gene of herpes simplex virus type 1

The immediate-early protein ICP0 (infected-cell polypeptide 0) of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) is a promiscuous transactivator of both viral and nonviral promoters in transient expression assays. Failure to splice the second of two introns in the ICP0 gene results in the utilization of an alternate stop codon that generates a truncated form of ICP0 called ICP0R. This protein exists in low levels in HSV-1-infected cells and functions as a dominant negative repressor of ICP0-mediated transactivation in transient expression assays. To conduct a detailed structure-function analysis of ICP0R, a series of insertion and deletion mutants of this protein were generated and analyzed in transfection assays. These studies indicated that segments of ICP0R that were rich in acidic amino acid residues (amino acids 9 to 76 and 233 to 241) or glycine residues (amino acids 242 to 262) were dispensable for the dominant negative phenotype. In contrast, the RING finger domain (amino acids 116 to 156) and surprisingly the sequences carboxy terminal to it (amino acids 157 to 232) were absolutely essential for transdominant repression. Consistent with these findings, the amino acid sequences of these two regions were conserved among other alphaherpesvirus ICP0 homologs. A construct containing only amino acids 76 to 232 inhibited ICP0-mediated transactivation almost as efficiently as wild-type ICP0R and represented the minimal sequences necessary for the dominant negative phenotype. These results demonstrated that the critical functional domain shared by both ICP0R and ICP0 is much more complex than a simple RING finger motif. Western blot (immunoblot) analyses of transfected cell lysates revealed that nearly all of the mutant constructs directed the expression of stable ICP0R proteins of the predicted molecular weight. However, there was a striking inverse correlation between the ability of a mutant construct to mediate transrepression and the amount of protein that it synthesized, indicating that dominant negative inhibition is achieved through the action of very little ICP0R protein.

Adenovirus early region 4 34-kilodalton protein directs the nuclear localization of the early region 1B 55-kilodalton protein in primate cells

The localization of the adenovirus type 5 34-kDa E4 and 55-kDa E1B proteins was determined in the absence of other adenovirus proteins. When expressed by transfection in human, monkey, hamster, rat, and mouse cell lines, the E1B protein was predominantly cytoplasmic and typically was excluded from the nucleus. When expressed by transfection, the E4 protein accumulated in the nucleus. Strikingly, when coexpressed by transfection in human, monkey, or baby hamster kidney cells, the E1B protein colocalized in the nucleus with the E4 protein. A complex of the E4 and E1B proteins was identified by coimmunoprecipitation in transfected HeLa cells. By contrast to the interaction observed in primate and baby hamster kidney cells, the E4 protein failed to direct the E1B protein to the nucleus in rat and mouse cell lines as well as CHO and V79 hamster cell lines. This failure of the E4 protein to direct the nuclear localization of the E1B protein in REF-52 rat cells was overcome by fusion with HeLa cells. Within 4 h of heterokaryon formation and with protein synthesis inhibited, a portion of the E4 protein present in the REF-52 nuclei migrated to the HeLa nuclei. Simultaneously, the previously cytoplasmic E1B protein colocalized with the E4 protein in both human and rat cell nuclei. These results suggest that a primate cell-specific factor mediates the functional interaction of the E1B and E4 proteins of adenovirus.

Prolonged gene expression and cell survival after infection by a herpes simplex virus mutant defective in the immediate-early genes encoding ICP4, ICP27, and ICP22

Very early in infection, herpes simplex virus (HSV) expresses four immediate-early (IE) regulatory proteins, ICP4, ICP0, ICP22, and ICP27. The systematic inactivation of sets of the IE proteins in cis, and the subsequent phenotypic analysis of the resulting mutants, should provide insights into how these proteins function in the HSV life cycle and also into the specific macromolecular events that are altered or perturbed in cells infected with virus strains blocked very early in infection. This approach may also provide a rational basis to assess the efficacy and safety of HSV mutants for use in gene transfer experiments. In this study, we generated and examined the phenotype of an HSV mutant simultaneously mutated in the ICP4, ICP27, and ICP22 genes of HSV. Unlike mutants deficient in ICP4 (d120), ICP4 and ICP27 (d92), and ICP4 and ICP22 (d96), mutants defective in ICP4, ICP27, and ICP22 (d95) were visually much less toxic to Vero and human embryonic lung cells. Cells infected with d95 at a multiplicity of infection of 10 PFU per cell retained a relatively normal morphology and expressed genes from the viral and cellular genomes for at least 3 days postinfection. The other mutant backgrounds were too toxic to allow examination of gene expression past 1 day postinfection. However, when cell survival was measured by the capacity of the infected cells to form colonies, d95 inhibited colony formation similarly to d92. This apparent paradox was reconciled by the observation that host cell DNA synthesis was inhibited in cells infected with d120, d92, d96, and d95. In addition, all of the mutants exhibited pronounced and distinctive alterations in nuclear morphology, as determined by electron microscopy. The appearance of d95-infected cells deviated from that of uninfected cells in that large circular structures formed in the nucleus. d95-infected cells abundantly expressed ICP0, which accumulated in fine punctate structures in the nucleus at early times postinfection and coalesced or grew to the large circular objects that were revealed by electron microscopy. Therefore, while the abundant accumulation of ICPO in the absence of ICP4, ICP22, and ICP27 may allow for prolonged gene expression, cell survival is impaired, in part, as a result of the inhibition of cellular DNA synthesis.

Herpes simplex virus type 1 protein IE63 affects the nuclear export of virus intron-containing transcripts

Using in situ hybridization labelling methods, we have determined that the herpes simplex virus type 1 immediate-early protein IE63 (ICP27) affects the cellular localization of virus transcripts. Intronless transcripts from the IE63, UL38, and UL44 genes are rapidly exported to and accumulate in the cytoplasm throughout infection, in either the presence or absence of IE63 expression. The intron-containing transcripts from the IE110 and UL15 genes, while initially cytoplasmic, are increasingly retained in the nucleus in distinct clumps as infection proceeds, and the clumps colocalize with the redistributed small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles. Infections with the IE63 mutant virus 27-lacZ demonstrated that in the absence of IE63 expression, nuclear retention of intron-containing transcripts was lost. The nuclear retention of UL15 transcripts, which demonstrated both nuclear and cytoplasmic label, was not as pronounced as that of the IE110 transcripts, and we propose that this is due to the late expression of UL15. Infections with the mutant virus 110C1, in which both introns of IE110 have been precisely removed (R.D. Everett, J. Gen. Virol. 72:651-659, 1991), demonstrated IE110 transcripts in both the nucleus and the cytoplasm; thus, exon definition sequences which regulate viral RNA transport are present in the IE110 transcript. By in situ hybridization a stable population of polyadenylated RNAs was found to accumulate in the nucleus in spots, most of which were separate from the small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particle clumps. The IE63 protein has an involvement, either direct or indirect, in the regulation of nucleocytoplasmic transport of viral transcripts, a function which contrasts with the recently proposed role of herpes simplex virus type 1 Us11 in promoting the nuclear export of partially spliced or unspliced transcripts (J.-J. Diaz, M. Duc Dodon, N. Schaerer-Uthurraly, D. Simonin, K. Kindbeiter, L. Gazzolo, and J.-J. Madjar, Nature [London] 379:273-277, 1996), the significance of which is discussed.

Properties of the novel herpes simplex virus type 1 origin binding protein, OBPC

We have recently identified a novel 53-kDa herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) protein encoded by, and in frame with, the 3' half of the UL9 open reading frame, designated OBPC (K. Baradaran, C. Dabrowski and P. A. Schaffer, J. Virol. 68:4251-4261, 1994). Here we show that OBPC is a nuclear protein synthesized at both early and late times postinfection. In gel-shift assays in vitro-synthesized OBPC bound to oriS site I DNA to form a complex identical in mobility to complex A, generated with infected cell extracts and site I DNA. OBPC inhibited both plaque formation and viral DNA replication in transient assays, consistent with its ability to bind to site I DNA and its limited ability to interact with other essential DNA replication proteins. These properties suggest that OBPC may play a role in the initiation, elongation, or packaging of viral DNA.

Overexpression of the herpes simplex virus type 1 immediate-early regulatory protein, ICP27, is responsible for the aberrant localization of ICP0 and mutant forms of ICP4 in ICP4 mutant virus-infected cells

ICP0 and ICP4 are immediate-early regulatory proteins of herpes simplex virus type 1. Previous studies by Knipe and Smith demonstrated that these two proteins are characteristically observed in the nuclei of wild-type virus-infected cells but predominantly in the cytoplasms of cells infected with several ICP4 temperature-sensitive (ts) mutant viruses at the nonpermissive temperature (NPT) (D. M. Knipe and J. L. Smith, Mol. Cell. Biol. 6:2371-2381, 1986). Consistent with this observation, it has been shown previously that ICP0 is present predominantly in the cytoplasms of cells infected with an ICP4 null mutant virus (n12) at high multiplicities of infection and that the level of ICP27, a third viral regulatory protein, plays an important role in determining the intracellular localization of ICP0 (Z. Zhu, W. Cai, and P. A. Schaffer, J. Virol. 68:3027-3040, 1994). To address whether the cytoplasmic localization of ICP0 is a common feature of cells infected with all ICP4 mutant viruses or whether mutant ICP4 polypeptides, together with ICP27, determine the intracellular localization of ICP0, we used double-staining immunofluorescence tests to examine the intracellular staining patterns of ICP0 and ICP4 in cells infected with an extensive series of ICP4 mutant viruses. In these tests, compared with the localization pattern of ICP0 in wild-type virus-infected cells, more ICP0 was detected in the cytoplasms of cells infected with all ICP4 mutants tested at high multiplicities of infection. Each of the mutant forms of ICP4 exhibiting predominantly cytoplasmic staining contains both the nuclear localization signal and the previously mapped ICP27-responsive region (Z. Zhu and P. A. Schaffer, J. Virol. 69:49-59, 1995). No correlation between the intracellular staining patterns of ICP0 and mutant forms of ICP4 was demonstrated, suggesting that mutant ICP4 polypeptides per se are not responsible for retention of ICP0 in the cytoplasm. This observation was confirmed in studies of cells cotransfected with plasmids expressing ICP0 and mutant forms of ICP4, in which the staining pattern of ICP0 was not changed in the presence of mutant ICP4 proteins. Studies of cells infected at low multiplicities with a variety of ICP4 ts mutant viruses at the NPT showed that both ICP0 and ts forms of ICP4 were localized predominantly within the nucleus. These observations are a further indication that the aberrant localization of the ts forms of ICP4 at the NPT is not a direct result of specific mutations in the ICP4 gene. In the final series of tests, the localization of ICP0 in cells infected with a double-mutant virus unable to express either ICP4 or ICP27 was examined. In these tests, ICP0 was detected exclusively in the nuclei of Vero cells but in both the nuclei and the cytoplasms of ICP27-expressing cells infected with the double mutant. These results demonstrate that ICP27, rather than the absence of functional ICP4, is responsible for the cytoplasmic localization of ICP0 in ICP4 mutant virus-infected cells. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that the aberrant localization of ICP0 and certain mutant forms of ICP4 in cells infected with ICP4 mutant viruses is mediated by high levels of ICP27 resulting from the inability of mutant forms of ICP4 to repress the expression of ICP27.

The RING finger domain: a recent example of a sequence-structure family

In the past 18 months, two RING finger structures have been solved. They represent the first reported structures for this novel zinc-binding sequence motif. Both structures are significantly different from other zinc-binding domains, in terms of both their zinc-ligation scheme and their three-dimensional structures. The RING finger domain appears to be a convenient scaffold which can be altered to provide functional specificity in those proteins that contain the motif.

Subcellular localization of Aleutian mink disease parvovirus proteins and DNA during permissive infection of Crandell feline kidney cells

Confocal microscopy allowed us to localize viral nonstructural (NS) and capsid (VP) proteins and DNA simultaneously in cells permissively infected with Aleutian mink disease parvovirus (ADV). Early after infection, NS proteins colocalized with viral DNA to form intranuclear inclusions, whereas VP proteins formed hollow intranuclear shells around the inclusions. Later, nuclei had irregular outlines and were virtually free of ADV products. In these cells, inclusions of viral DNA with or without associated NS protein were embedded in cytoplasmic VP protein. These findings implied that ADV replication within an infected cell is regulated spatially as well as temporally.

Regulation of herpes simplex virus poly (A) site usage and the action of immediate-early protein IE63 in the early-late switch

The essential herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) immediate-early IE63 (ICP27) is pleiotropic in function, promoting the switch from the early to late phase of virus gene expression, and has effects on the posttranscriptional processes of mRNA splicing and 3' processing. We have investigated the role of IE63 in the regulation of viral mRNA 3' processing and of late gene expression. Our in vitro 3' processing studies demonstrated that HSV-1 infection induces an activity, which requires IE63 gene expression, responsible for an observed increase in 3' processing of selected HSV-1 poly(A) sites. Processing efficiencies at the poly(A) sites of two late genes, UL38 and UL44, shown to be inherently weak processing sites, were increased by the IE63-induced activity. In contrast, 3' processing at the poly(A) sites of selected immediate-early and early genes, stronger processing sites, was unaffected by IE63 expression. UV cross-linking experiments demonstrated that HSV infection caused enhanced binding of protein factors, including the 64-kDa component of cleavage stimulation factor (CstF), to poly(A) site RNAs from virus genes of all temporal classes and that this enhanced binding required expression of IE63. By immunofluorescence, the homogeneous pattern of the 64-kDa CstF protein distribution became slightly clumped with infection, whereas the splicing small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles were recognized into a highly punctate distribution away from the sites of virus transcription. This effect could create an increase in the relative concentration of 3' processing factors available to pre-mRNAs. Western blot (immunoblot) analysis showed that IE63 was required for expression of several true late genes and for the efficient and timely expression of the UL29 and UL42 early genes, integral components on the viral DNA synthesis machinery. Our data are consistent with two effects of IE63 on late gene regulation: firstly, a stimulation of pre-mRNA 3' processing and, secondly, as a requirement for expression of functions necessary for viral DNA synthesis.

In vivo and in vitro characterization of the B1 and B2 zinc-binding domains from the acute promyelocytic leukemia protooncoprotein PML

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) has been ascribed to a chromosomal translocation event which results in a fusion protein comprising the PML protein and retinoic acid receptor alpha. PML is normally a component of a nuclear multiprotein complex which is disrupted in the APL disease state. Here, two newly defined cysteine/histidine-rich protein motifs called the B-box (B1 and B2) from PML have been characterized in terms of their effect on PML nuclear body formation, their dimerization, and their biophysical properties. We have shown that both peptides bind Zn2+, which induces changes in the peptides' structures. We demonstrate that mutants in both B1 and B2 do not form PML nuclear bodies in vivo and have a phenotype that is different from that observed in the APL disease state. Interestingly, these mutations do not affect the ability of wild-type PML to dimerize with mutant proteins in vitro, suggesting that the B1 and B2 domains are involved in an additional interaction central to PML nuclear body formation. This report in conjunction with our previous work demonstrates that the PML RING-Bl/B2 motif plays a fundamental role in formation of a large multiprotein complex, a function that may be common to those unrelated proteins which contain the motif.

Analysis of the growth and transformation suppressor domains of promyelocytic leukemia gene, PML

The promyelocytic leukemia gene (PML) involved in the t(15;17) (q22;q12) translocation in acute promyelocytic leukemia is a growth suppressor. To elucidate the functional domains of PML, several mutants lacking the nuclear localization signal (PMLnls-), the dimerization domain (PMLdim-), the proline-rich domain at the N-terminal (PMLpro-), the proline-rich RING finger motif (PMLpr-), the proline-rich RING finger B-box-1 (PML-prb-), the serine-proline-rich domain at the C-terminal (PMLsp-), and the double mutant (PMLprb-nls-) have been constructed. Immunofluorescence staining of transiently transfected NIH3T3 cells demonstrated that the RING finger motif, dimerization domain, and nuclear localization signal are all required for the formation of PML oncogenic domains (PODs). Immunofluorescence staining of transiently transfected GM637D human fibroblasts indicated that expression of PMLprb-, PM-Lnls-, and PMLprb-nls- led to a significant reduction or, in some cases, complete elimination of PODs. PMLdim-, PMLnls-, PMLpr-, PMLprb-, and PMLprb-nls- mutants were found to lose their ability to suppress transformation of NIH3T3 cells by activated neu, while PMLpro- and PMLsp- mutants did not. These results suggest that the ability of PML to form a POD is essential for suppression of growth and transformation. Furthermore, since PMLprb-, PMLnls-, and PMLprb-nls- mutants could block the suppression effect of wild-type PML on transformation of NIH3T3 cells by the neu oncogene, these PML mutants are potential dominant negative inhibitors of PML. Our study also suggests that the RING finger motif may interact with other nuclear proteins.

Herpes simplex virus-mediated activation of human immunodeficiency virus is inhibited by oligonucleoside methylphosphonates that target immediate-early mRNAs 1 and 3

IE1 and IE3 mRNAs and their protein products (IE110 and IE175, respectively) were detected in HSV-1-infected U937 cells at 4-15 hours postinfection. In transient expression assays with infectious HIV or an HIV-LTR-directed chloramphenicol acetyltransferase construction (HIV-LTRcat), HSV-1 caused HIV activation (86.7% +/- 6.4% conversion). Electrophoretic mobility shift assays with DNA sequences that encompass the LBP-1 binding site revealed increased levels of DNA-protein complex formation with nuclear extracts from HSV-1 infected as compared with uninfected U937 cells. Novel bands were not seen. HSV-1 mutants respectively deleted in IE110 (dl1403) or IE175 (d120) activated HIV as well as wild-type virus. However, HSV-1-mediated activation was inhibited (26% conversion) by simultaneous treatment with oligonucleoside methylphosphonates (ONMP) that specifically inhibit expression of IE110 (IE1TI) or IE175 (IE3TI). ONMP did not inhibit activation when used individually (83.8% and 67.8% conversion with IETI1 and IE3TI, respectively). Combinations of mutant ONMP that do not inhibit IE110 or IE175 expression did not reduce the levels of HSV-1-mediated activation. These findings suggest that HSV genes IE1 and IE3 can independently activate HIV in monocytic cells and ONMP that target HSV IE genes can be used to inhibit HIV activation.

VP16 interacts via its activation domain with VP22, a tegument protein of herpes simplex virus, and is relocated to a novel macromolecular assembly in coexpressing cells

In addition to its function as a powerful transactivator of viral immediate-early transcription, VP16 is an essential component of the herpes simplex virus (HSV) virion. As such, VP16 is introduced into cells, to effect its function in transactivation, as part of the virus tegument. Here we examine the potential for VP16 protein-protein interactions specific to virus-infected cells and show that VP16 copurifies in a highly enriched fraction with a single major polypeptide which we identify as the virus-encoded structural protein VP22. We further show that in vitro-translated VP22 binds specifically to purified VP16. The activation domain of VP16 was required and largely sufficient for this binding. Mutations within this domain, which disrupt its transactivation function, also affected VP22 binding. Furthermore, we show that while VP16 and VP22 showed distinct patterns of compartmentalization in vivo, coexpression of both proteins resulted in a profound reorganization from their normal locations to a novel macromolecular assembly. The colocalization was also dependent on the activation domain of VP16 but required additional determinants within the N terminus. These results are discussed in the context of VP16 regulation of transcription both early in infection during delivery of tegument proteins and at late times during virus assembly.

The C-terminal repressor region of herpes simplex virus type 1 ICP27 is required for the redistribution of small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles and splicing factor SC35; however, these alterations are not sufficient to inhibit host cell splicing

Herpes simplex virus type 1 infection results in a reorganization of antigens associated with the small nuclear ribonucleoprotein particles (snRNPs), resulting in the formation of prominent clusters near the nuclear periphery. In this study, we show that the immediate-early protein ICP27, which is involved in the impairment of host cell splicing and in the changes in the distribution of snRNPs, is also required for reassorting the SR domain splicing factor SC35. Other viral processes, such as adsorption and penetration, shutoff of host protein synthesis, early and late gene expression, and DNA replication, do not appear to play a role in changing the staining pattern of splicing antigens. Furthermore, the C-terminal repressor region of ICP27, which is required for the inhibitory effects on splicing, also is involved in redistributing the snRNPs and SC35. During infection or transfection with five different repressor mutants, the speckled staining pattern characteristic of uninfected cells was seen and the level of a spliced target mRNA was not reduced. Infections in the presence of activator mutants showed a redistributed snRNP pattern and a decreased accumulation of spliced target mRNA. Moreover, two arginine-rich regions in the N-terminal half of ICP27 were not required for the redistribution of snRNPs or SC35. Substitution of these regions with a lysine-rich sequence from simian virus 40 large-T antigen resulted in a redistribution of splicing antigens. Unexpectedly, a repressor mutant with a ts phenotype showed a redistributed staining pattern like that seen with wild-type infected cells. During infections with this ts mutant, splicing was not inhibited, as shown in this and previous studies, confirming its repressor phenotype. Furthermore, both the mutant and the wild-type protein colocalized with snRNPs. Therefore, the redistribution of snRNPs and SC35 correlates with ICP27-mediated impairment of host cell splicing, but these alterations are not sufficient to fully inhibit splicing. This indicates that active splicing complexes are still present even after dramatic changes in the organization of the snRNPs.