A unique SUMO-2-interacting motif within LANA is essential for KSHV latency

Daxx and HIRA go viral - How chromatin remodeling complexes affect DNA virus infection

Daxx and HIRA are key proteins in the host response to DNA virus infections. Daxx is involved in apoptosis, transcription regulation, and stress responses. During DNA virus infections, Daxx helps modulate the immune response and viral progression. Viruses like adenoviruses and herpesviruses can exploit Daxx to evade immune detection, either by targeting it for degradation or inhibiting its function. Daxx also interacts with chromatin to regulate transcription, which viruses can manipulate to enhance their own gene expression and replication. HIRA is a histone chaperone and reported to be essential for chromatin assembly and gene regulation. It plays a critical role in maintaining chromatin structure and modulating gene accessibility. During DNA virus infection, HIRA influences chromatin remodeling, affecting both viral and host DNA accessibility, which impacts viral replication and gene expression. Additionally, the histone variant H3.3 is crucial for maintaining active chromatin states. It is incorporated into chromatin independently of DNA replication and is associated with active gene regions. During viral infections, H3.3 dynamics can be altered, affecting viral genome accessibility and replication efficiency. Overall, Daxx and HIRA are integral to orchestrating viral infection programs, maintaining latency and/or persistence, and influencing virus-induced transformation by modulating chromatin dynamics and host immune responses, making them significant targets for therapeutic strategies once fully understood. Here, we summarize various DNA viruses and their crosstalk with Daxx and HIRA.

Unidirectional recruitment between MeCP2 and KSHV-encoded LANA revealed by CRISPR/Cas9 recruitment assay

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV, HHV-8) is associated with several human malignancies. During latency, the viral genomes reside in the nucleus of infected cells as large non-integrated plasmids, known as episomes. To ensure episome maintenance, the latency protein LANA tethers the viral episomes to the cell chromosomes during cell division. Directional recruitment of protein complexes is critical for the proper function of many nuclear processes. To test for recruitment directionality between LANA and cellular proteins, we directed LANA via catalytically inactive Cas9 (dCas9) to a repeat sequence to obtain easily detectable dots. Then, the recruitment of nuclear proteins to these dots can be evaluated. We termed this assay CRISPR-PITA for Protein Interaction and Telomere Recruitment Assay. Using this protein recruitment assay, we found that LANA recruits its known interactors ORC2 and SIN3A. Interestingly, LANA was unable to recruit MeCP2, but MeCP2 recruited LANA. Both LANA and histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1) interact with the transcriptional-repression domain (TRD) and the methyl-CpG-binding domain (MBD) of MeCP2. Similar to LANA, HDAC1 was unable to recruit MeCP2. While heterochromatin protein 1 (HP1), which interacts with the N-terminal of MeCP2, can recruit MeCP2. We propose that available interacting domains force this recruitment directionality. We hypothesized that the tandem repeats in the SunTag may force MeCP2 dimerization and mimic the form of DNA-bound MeCP2. Indeed, providing only the tandem epitopes of SunTag allows LANA to recruit MeCP2 in infected cells. Therefore, CRISPR-PITA revealed the rules of unidirectional recruitment and allowed us to break this directionality.

KSHVbook: An Information-Sharing Database for Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is a double-stranded DNA virus belonging to the γ-herpesvirus subfamily. KSHV is the causative agent of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), primary effusion lymphoma (PEL), multicentric Castleman's disease (MCD), and KSHV inflammatory cytokine syndrome (KICS). Since its discovery, research on KSHV has rapidly progressed, but existing information platforms relatively lack comprehensiveness and do not provide efficient analysis tools tailored for KSHV. To further promote the research on KSHV more effectively, we have developed KSHVbook (http://www.kshvbook.com), a specialized information-sharing database dedicated to KSHV. This platform offers extensive information on genes, coding sequences, proteins, and the gene regulatory region. Besides, the KSHVbook includes about 35 010 transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs), 342 010 pairs of KSHV miRNA-host target gene relationships, protein structures predicted by AlphaFold3, qPCR primers, and so on. We also develop analytical tools for viral genome regions, TFBSs, and KSHV miRNA target genes to discover previously unknown biological functions of KSHV. These analytical tools can effectively identify the potential regulatory relationships between host transcription factors and viral genes. Overall, this platform provides a centralized data resource for KSHV research by integrating multiple databases, offering accessible analysis tools, and simplifying data acquisition. The KSHVbook will continue to be updated, and more features can be found on the website.

KSHV hijacks the antiviral kinase IKKε to initiate lytic replication

IKKε is a traditional antiviral kinase known for positively regulating the production of type I interferon (IFN) and the expression of IFN-stimulated genes (ISGs) during various virus infections. However, through an inhibitor screen targeting cellular kinases, we found that IKKε plays a crucial role in the lytic replication of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). Mechanistically, during KSHV lytic replication, IKKε undergoes significant SUMOylation at both Lys321 and Lys549 by the viral SUMO E3 ligase ORF45. This SUMOylation event leads to the association of IKKε with PML, resulting in the disruption of PML nuclear bodies (PML NBs) and subsequent increase in lytic replication of KSHV. Notably, IKKε does not affect the total expression level of PML but facilitates the translocation of PML from the nucleus to the cytoplasm during KSHV lytic replication. Further experiments utilizing mutations on the SUMOylation sites of IKKε or inhibiting IKKε using BAY-985 showed that these actions no longer impact PML NBs and completely suppress the lytic replication of KSHV. These findings not only emphasize the essential role of IKKε in the life cycle of KSHV but also illustrate how KSHV exploits IKKε through SUMOylation modification to enhance its own replication process.

KAP1/TRIM28 - antiviral and proviral protagonist of herpesvirus biology

Dysregulation of the constitutive heterochromatin machinery (HCM) that silences pericentromeric regions and endogenous retroviral elements in the human genome has consequences for aging and cancer. By recruiting epigenetic regulators, Krüppel-associated box (KRAB)-associated protein 1 (KAP1/TRIM28/TIF1β) is integral to the function of the HCM. Epigenetically silencing DNA genomes of incoming herpesviruses to enforce latency, KAP1 and HCM also serve in an antiviral capacity. In addition to gene silencing, newer reports highlight KAP1's ability to directly activate cellular gene transcription. Here, we discuss the many facets of KAP1, including recent findings that unexpectedly connect KAP1 to the inflammasome, reveal KAP1 cleavage as a novel mode of regulation, and argue for a pro-herpesviral KAP1 function that ensures transition from transcription to replication of the herpesvirus genome.

Rewriting Viral Fate: Epigenetic and Transcriptional Dynamics in KSHV Infection

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), a γ-herpesvirus, is predominantly associated with Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) as well as two lymphoproliferative disorders: primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) and multicentric Castleman disease (MCD). Like other herpesviruses, KSHV employs two distinct life cycles: latency and lytic replication. To establish a lifelong persistent infection, KSHV has evolved various strategies to manipulate the epigenetic machinery of the host. In latently infected cells, most viral genes are epigenetically silenced by components of cellular chromatin, DNA methylation and histone post-translational modifications. However, some specific latent genes are preserved and actively expressed to maintain the virus's latent state within the host cell. Latency is not a dead end, but the virus has the ability to reactivate. This reactivation is a complex process that involves the removal of repressive chromatin modifications and increased accessibility for both viral and cellular factors, allowing the activation of the full transcriptional program necessary for the subsequent lytic replication. This review will introduce the roles of epigenetic modifications in KSHV latent and lytic life cycles, including DNA methylation, histone methylation and acetylation modifications, chromatin remodeling, genome conformation, and non-coding RNA expression. Additionally, we will also review the transcriptional regulation of viral genes and host factors in KSHV infection. This review aims to enhance our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of epigenetic modifications and transcriptional regulation in the KSHV life cycle, providing insights for future research.

Host factor KAP1 coordinates temporal control between transcription and replication

Temporal control of transcription and replication is necessary for efficient Epstein-Barr virus reactivation. Xu et al. identified the KAP1/EA-D/ATM axis as a critical regulator of these processes. This discovery illuminates the collaboration between host and viral factors as an essential interaction for viral reactivation.

Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus latency-associated nuclear antigen: more than a key mediator of viral persistence

Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), or human herpesvirus-8, is an oncogenic herpesvirus. Its latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) is essential for the persistence of KSHV in latently infected cells. LANA mediates replication of the latent viral genome during the S phase of a dividing cell and partitions episomes to daughter cells by attaching them to mitotic chromosomes. It also mediates the establishment of latency in newly infected cells through epigenetic mechanisms and suppresses the activation of the productive replication cycle. Furthermore, LANA promotes the proliferation of infected cell by acting as a transcriptional regulator and by modulating the cellular proteome through the recruitment of several cellular ubiquitin ligases. Finally, LANA interferes with the innate and adaptive immune system to facilitate the immune escape of infected cells.

Zinc controls PML nuclear body formation through regulation of a paralog specific auto-inhibition in SUMO1

SUMO proteins are important regulators of many key cellular functions in part through their ability to form interactions with other proteins containing SUMO interacting motifs (SIMs). One characteristic feature of all SUMO proteins is the presence of a highly divergent intrinsically disordered region at their N-terminus. In this study, we examine the role of this N-terminal region of SUMO proteins in SUMO–SIM interactions required for the formation of nuclear bodies by the promyelocytic leukemia (PML) protein (PML-NBs). We demonstrate that the N-terminal region of SUMO1 functions in a paralog specific manner as an auto-inhibition domain by blocking its binding to the phosphorylated SIMs of PML and Daxx. Interestingly, we find that this auto-inhibition in SUMO1 is relieved by zinc, and structurally show that zinc stabilizes the complex between SUMO1 and a phospho-mimetic form of the SIM of PML. In addition, we demonstrate that increasing cellular zinc levels enhances PML-NB formation in senescent cells. Taken together, these results provide important insights into a paralog specific function of SUMO1, and suggest that zinc levels could play a crucial role in regulating SUMO1-SIM interactions required for PML-NB formation and function.

The SUMO E3 ligase activity of ORF45 determines KSHV lytic replication

RSK1, an essential cellular kinase for Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) replication, is highly phosphorylated and SUMOylated during KSHV lytic cycle, which determine the substrate phosphorylation and specificity of RSK1, respectively. However, the SUMO E3 ligase responsible for attaching SUMO to RSK1 has not yet been identified. By genome-wide screening, we found that KSHV ORF45 is necessary and sufficient to enhance RSK1 SUMOylation. Mechanistically, KSHV ORF45 binds to SUMOs via two classic SUMO-interacting motifs (SIMs) and functions as a SIM-dependent SUMO E3 ligase for RSK1. Mutations on these ORF45 SIMs resulted in much lower lytic gene expressions, viral DNA replication, and mature progeny virus production. Interestingly, KSHV ORF45 controls RSK1 SUMOylation and phosphorylation via two separated functional regions: SIMs and amino acid 17-90, respectively, which do not affect each other. Similar to KSHV ORF45, ORF45 of Rhesus Macaque Rhadinovirus has only one SIM and also increases RSK1 SUMOylation in a SIM-dependent manner, while other ORF45 homologues do not have this function. Our work characterized ORF45 as a novel virus encoded SUMO E3 ligase, which is required for ORF45-RSK1 axis-mediated KSHV lytic gene expression.

SUMOylation in Viral Replication and Antiviral Defense

SUMOylation is a ubiquitination-like post-translational modification that plays an essential role in the regulation of protein function. Recent studies have shown that proteins from both RNA and DNA virus families can be modified by SUMO conjugation, which facilitates viral replication. Viruses can manipulate the entire process of SUMOylation through interplay with the SUMO pathway. By contrast, SUMOylation can eliminate viral infection by regulating host antiviral immune components. A deeper understanding of how SUMOylation regulates viral proteins and cellular antiviral components is necessary for the development of effective antiviral therapies. In the present review, the regulatory mechanism of SUMOylation in viral replication and infection and the antiviral immune response, and the consequences of this regulation for viral replication and engagement with antiviral innate immunity are summarized. The potential therapeutic applications of SUMOylation in diseases caused by viruses are also discussed.

RSK1 SUMOylation is required for KSHV lytic replication

RSK1, a downstream kinase of the MAPK pathway, has been shown to regulate multiple cellular processes and is essential for lytic replication of a variety of viruses, including Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV). Besides phosphorylation, it is not known whether other post-translational modifications play an important role in regulating RSK1 function. We demonstrate that RSK1 undergoes robust SUMOylation during KSHV lytic replication at lysine residues K110, K335, and K421. SUMO modification does not alter RSK1 activation and kinase activity upon KSHV ORF45 co-expression, but affects RSK1 downstream substrate phosphorylation. Compared to wild-type RSK1, the overall phosphorylation level of RxRxxS*/T* motif is significantly declined in RSK1K110/335/421R expressing cells. Specifically, SUMOylation deficient RSK1 cannot efficiently phosphorylate eIF4B. Sequence analysis showed that eIF4B has one SUMO-interacting motif (SIM) between the amino acid position 166 and 170 (166IRVDV170), which mediates the association between eIF4B and RSK1 through SUMO-SIM interaction. These results indicate that SUMOylation regulates the phosphorylation of RSK1 downstream substrates, which is required for efficient KSHV lytic replication.

Conserved E1B-55K SUMOylation in different human adenovirus species is a potent regulator of intracellular localization

Over the past decades, studies on the biology of human adenoviruses (HAdVs) mainly focused on the HAdV prototype species C type 5 (HAdV-C5) and revealed fundamental molecular insights into mechanisms of viral replication and viral cell transformation. Recently, other HAdV species are gaining more and more attention in the field. Reports on large E1B proteins (E1B-55K) from different HAdV species showed that these multifactorial proteins possess strikingly different features along with highly conserved functions. In this work, we identified potential SUMO-conjugation motifs (SCMs) in E1B-55K proteins from HAdV species A to F. Mutational inactivation of these SCMs demonstrated that HAdV E1B-55K proteins are SUMOylated at a single lysine residue that is highly conserved among HAdV species B to E. Moreover, we provide evidence that E1B-55K SUMOylation is a potent regulator of intracellular localization and p53-mediated transcription in most HAdV species. We also identified a lysine residue at position 101 (K101), which is unique to HAdV-C5 E1B-55K and specifically regulates its SUMOylation and nucleo-cytoplasmic shuttling. Our findings reveal important new aspects on HAdV E1B-55K proteins and suggest that different E1B-55K species possess conserved SCMs while their SUMOylation has divergent cellular effects during infection. Importance E1B-55K is a multifunctional adenoviral protein and its functions are highly regulated by SUMOylation. Although functional consequences of SUMOylated HAdV-C5 E1B-55K are well studied, we lack information on the effects of SUMOylation on homologous E1B-55K proteins from other HAdV species. Here, we show that SUMOylation is a conserved post-translational modification in most of the E1B-55K proteins, similar to what we know about HAdV-C5 E1B-55K. Moreover, we identify subcellular localization and regulation of p53-dependent transcription as highly conserved SUMOylation-regulated E1B-55K functions. Thus, our results highlight how HAdV proteins might have evolved in different HAdV species with conserved domains involved in virus replication and differing alternative functions and interactions with the host cell machinery. Future research will link these differences and similarities to the diverse pathogenicity and organ tropism of the different HAdV species.

Proteomic Profiling Identifies Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus (KSHV)-Encoded LANASIM-Associated Proteins in Hypoxia

Hypoxia signaling is a key regulator in the development and progression of many types of human malignancies, including viral cancers. The latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA), encoded by Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) during latency, is a multifunctional protein that plays an essential role in viral episome maintenance and lytic gene silencing for inducing tumorigenesis. Although our previous studies have shown that LANA contains a SUMO-interacting motif (LANA^SIM), and hypoxia reduces SUMOylated KAP1 association with LANA^SIM, the physiological proteomic network of LANA^SIM-associated cellular proteins in response to hypoxia is still unclear. In this study, we individually established cell lines stably expressing wild-type LANA (LANA^WT) and its SIM-deleted mutant (LANA^dSIM) and treated them with or without hypoxia, followed by coimmunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry analysis to systemically identify the hypoxia-responsive profile of LANA^SIM-associated cellular proteins. We found that in hypoxia, the number of cellular proteins associated with LANA^WT instead of LANA^dSIM was dramatically increased. Functional network analysis revealed that two major pathways, which included cytoskeleton organization and DNA/RNA binding and processing pathways, were significantly enriched for 28 LANA^SIM-associated proteins in response to hypoxia. HNRNPU was one of the proteins consistently identified that interacted with LANA^SIM in different proteomic screening systems and responded to hypoxia. This study provides a proteomic profile of LANA^SIM-associated proteins in hypoxia and facilitates our understanding of the role of the collaboration between viral infection and the hypoxia response in inducing viral persistence and tumorigenesis. IMPORTANCE Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) has been reported to be involved in the regulation of host proteins in response to hypoxic stress. LANA, one of the key latent proteins, contains a SUMO-interacting motif (LANA^SIM) and reduces the association with SUMOylated KAP1 upon hypoxic treatment. However, the physiological systematic network of LANA^SIM-associated cellular proteins in hypoxia is still unclear. Here, we revealed two major pathways, which included cytoskeleton organization and DNA/RNA binding and processing pathways, that were significantly enriched for 28 LANA^SIM-associated proteins in hypoxia. This discovery not only provides a proteomic profile of LANA^SIM-associated proteins in hypoxia but also facilitates our understanding of the collaboration between viral infection and hypoxic stress in inducing viral persistence and tumorigenesis.

A Tale of Usurpation and Subversion: SUMO-Dependent Integrity of Promyelocytic Leukemia Nuclear Bodies at the Crossroad of Infection and Immunity

Promyelocytic leukemia nuclear bodies (PML NBs) are multi-protein assemblies representing distinct sub-nuclear structures. As phase-separated molecular condensates, PML NBs exhibit liquid droplet-like consistency. A key organizer of the assembly and dynamics of PML NBs is the ubiquitin-like SUMO modification system. SUMO is covalently attached to PML and other core components of PML NBs thereby exhibiting a glue-like function by providing multivalent interactions with proteins containing SUMO interacting motifs (SIMs). PML NBs serve as the catalytic center for nuclear SUMOylation and SUMO-SIM interactions are essential for protein assembly within these structures. Importantly, however, formation of SUMO chains on PML and other PML NB-associated proteins triggers ubiquitylation and proteasomal degradation which coincide with disruption of these nuclear condensates. To date, a plethora of nuclear activities such as transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression, apoptosis, senescence, cell cycle control, DNA damage response, and DNA replication have been associated with PML NBs. Not surprisingly, therefore, SUMO-dependent PML NB integrity has been implicated in regulating many physiological processes including tumor suppression, metabolism, drug-resistance, development, cellular stemness, and anti-pathogen immune response. The interplay between PML NBs and viral infection is multifaceted. As a part of the cellular antiviral defense strategy, PML NB components are crucial restriction factors for many viruses and a mutual positive correlation has been found to exist between PML NBs and the interferon response. Viruses, in turn, have developed counterstrategies for disarming PML NB associated immune defense measures. On the other end of the spectrum, certain viruses are known to usurp specific PML NB components for successful replication and disruption of these sub-nuclear foci has recently been linked to the stimulation rather than curtailment of antiviral gene repertoire. Importantly, the ability of invading virions to manipulate the host SUMO modification machinery is essential for this interplay between PML NB integrity and viruses. Moreover, compelling evidence is emerging in favor of bacterial pathogens to negotiate with the SUMO system thereby modulating PML NB-directed intrinsic and innate immunity. In the current context, we will present an updated account of the dynamic intricacies between cellular PML NBs as the nuclear SUMO modification hotspots and immune regulatory mechanisms in response to viral and bacterial pathogens.

Viruses, SUMO, and immunity: the interplay between viruses and the host SUMOylation system

The conjugation of small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) proteins to substrates is a well-described post-translational modification that regulates protein activity, subcellular localization, and protein-protein interactions for a variety of downstream cellular activities. Several studies describe SUMOylation as an essential post-translational modification for successful viral infection across a broad range of viruses, including RNA and DNA viruses, both enveloped and un-enveloped. These viruses include but are not limited to herpes viruses, human immunodeficiency virus-1, and coronaviruses. In addition to the SUMOylation of viral proteins during infection, evidence shows that viruses manipulate the SUMO pathway for host protein SUMOylation. SUMOylation of host and viral proteins greatly impacts host innate immunity through viral manipulation of the host SUMOylation machinery to promote viral replication and pathogenesis. Other post-translational modifications like phosphorylation can also modulate SUMO function. For example, phosphorylation of COUP-TF interacting protein 2 (CTIP2) leads to its SUMOylation and subsequent proteasomal degradation. The SUMOylation of CTIP2 and subsequent degradation prevents CTIP2-mediated recruitment of a multi-enzymatic complex to the HIV-1 promoter that usually prevents the transcription of integrated viral DNA. Thus, the "SUMO switch" could have implications for CTIP2-mediated transcriptional repression of HIV-1 in latency and viral persistence. In this review, we describe the consequences of SUMO in innate immunity and then focus on the various ways that viral pathogens have evolved to hijack the conserved SUMO machinery. Increased understanding of the many roles of SUMOylation in viral infections can lead to novel insight into the regulation of viral pathogenesis with the potential to uncover new targets for antiviral therapies.

Targeting Host Cellular Factors as a Strategy of Therapeutic Intervention for Herpesvirus Infections

Herpesviruses utilize various host factors to establish latent infection, survival, and spread disease in the host. These factors include host cellular machinery, host proteins, gene expression, multiple transcription factors, cellular signal pathways, immune cell activation, transcription factors, cytokines, angiogenesis, invasion, and factors promoting metastasis. The knowledge and understanding of host genes, protein products, and biochemical pathways lead to discovering safe and effective antivirals to prevent viral reactivation and spread infection. Here, we focus on the contribution of pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and resolution lipid metabolites of the arachidonic acid (AA) pathway in the lifecycle of herpesvirus infections. We discuss how various herpesviruses utilize these lipid pathways to their advantage and how we target them to combat herpesvirus infection. We also summarize recent development in anti-herpesvirus therapeutics and new strategies proposed or under clinical trials. These anti-herpesvirus therapeutics include inhibitors blocking viral life cycle events, engineered anticancer agents, epigenome influencing factors, immunomodulators, and therapeutic compounds from natural extracts.

Herpesvirus latency

Herpesviruses infect virtually all humans and establish lifelong latency and reactivate to infect other humans. Latency requires multiple functions: maintaining the herpesvirus genome in the nuclei of cells; partitioning the viral genome to daughter cells in dividing cells; avoiding recognition by the immune system by limiting protein expression; producing noncoding viral RNAs (including microRNAs) to suppress lytic gene expression or regulate cellular protein expression that could otherwise eliminate virus-infected cells; modulating the epigenetic state of the viral genome to regulate viral gene expression; and reactivating to infect other hosts. Licensed antivirals inhibit virus replication, but do not affect latency. Understanding of the mechanisms of latency is leading to novel approaches to destroy latently infected cells or inhibit reactivation from latency.

Phase separation and DAXX redistribution contribute to LANA nuclear body and KSHV genome dynamics during latency and reactivation

Liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) can drive formation of diverse and essential macromolecular structures, including those specified by viruses. Kaposi’s Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus (KSHV) genomes associate with the viral encoded Latency-Associated Nuclear Antigen (LANA) to form stable nuclear bodies (NBs) during latent infection. Here, we show that LANA-NB formation and KSHV genome conformation involves LLPS. Using LLPS disrupting solvents, we show that LANA-NBs are partially disrupted, while DAXX and PML foci are highly resistant. LLPS disruption altered the LANA-dependent KSHV chromosome conformation but did not stimulate lytic reactivation. We found that LANA-NBs undergo major morphological transformation during KSHV lytic reactivation to form LANA-associated replication compartments encompassing KSHV DNA. DAXX colocalizes with the LANA-NBs during latency but is evicted from the LANA-associated lytic replication compartments. These findings indicate the LANA-NBs are dynamic super-molecular nuclear structures that partly depend on LLPS and undergo morphological transitions corresponding to the different modes of viral replication.

During latent infection, gamma-herpesvirus genomes are maintained as extrachromosomal circular DNA, referred to as episomes, by dedicated viral-encoded episome maintenance proteins. KSHV-encoded LANA maintains viral episomes through binding as an oligomeric protein to repetitive DNA elements in the viral terminal repeats (TRs). Viral episomes can be visualized as LANA-associated nuclear bodies (LANA-NBs). Here, we show that LANA-NBs utilize mechanisms of self-assembly through liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) to build dynamic structures that change during cell cycle and viral life cycle. We find that DAXX is a component of the latent phase LANA-NBs, but is evicted during the transition to lytic replication where LANA remains associated with KSHV DNA to form a ring-like replication compartment.

Polyploid Giant Cancer Cells, a Hallmark of Oncoviruses and a New Therapeutic Challenge

Tumors are renowned as intricate systems that harbor heterogeneous cancer cells with distinctly diverse molecular signatures, sizes and genomic contents. Among those various genomic clonal populations within the complex tumoral architecture are the polyploid giant cancer cells (PGCC). Although described for over a century, PGCC are increasingly being recognized for their prominent role in tumorigenesis, metastasis, therapy resistance and tumor repopulation after therapy. A shared characteristic among all tumors triggered by oncoviruses is the presence of polyploidy. Those include Human Papillomaviruses (HPV), Epstein Barr Virus (EBV), Hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV, respectively), Human T-cell lymphotropic virus-1 (HTLV-1), Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) and Merkel polyomavirus (MCPyV). Distinct viral proteins, for instance Tax for HTLV-1 or HBx for HBV have demonstrated their etiologic role in favoring the appearance of PGCC. Different intriguing biological mechanisms employed by oncogenic viruses, in addition to viruses with high oncogenic potential such as human cytomegalovirus, could support the generation of PGCC, including induction of endoreplication, inactivation of tumor suppressors, development of hypoxia, activation of cellular senescence and others. Interestingly, chemoresistance and radioresistance have been reported in the context of oncovirus-induced cancers, for example KSHV and EBV-associated lymphomas and high-risk HPV-related cervical cancer. This points toward a potential linkage between the previously mentioned players and highlights PGCC as keystone cancer cells in virally-induced tumors. Subsequently, although new therapeutic approaches are actively needed to fight PGCC, attention should also be drawn to reveal the relationship between PGCC and oncoviruses, with the ultimate goal of establishing effective therapeutic platforms for treatment of virus-associated cancers. This review discusses the presence of PGCCs in tumors induced by oncoviruses, biological mechanisms potentially favoring their appearance, as well as their consequent implication at the clinical and therapeutic level.

Regulation of KSHV Latency and Lytic Reactivation

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is associated with three malignancies— Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS), primary effusion lymphoma (PEL), and multicentric Castleman’s disease (MCD). Central to the pathogenesis of these diseases is the KSHV viral life cycle, which is composed of a quiescent latent phase and a replicative lytic phase. While the establishment of latency enables persistent KSHV infection and evasion of the host immune system, lytic replication is essential for the dissemination of the virus between hosts and within the host itself. The transition between these phases, known as lytic reactivation, is controlled by a complex set of environmental, host, and viral factors. The effects of these various factors converge on the regulation of two KSHV proteins whose functions facilitate each phase of the viral life cycle—latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) and the master switch of KSHV reactivation, replication and transcription activator (RTA). This review presents the current understanding of how the transition between the phases of the KSHV life cycle is regulated, how the various phases contribute to KSHV pathogenesis, and how the viral life cycle can be exploited as a therapeutic target.

Lactate Induces Production of the tRNAHis Half to Promote B-lymphoblastic Cell Proliferation

High plasma lactate is emerging as a critical regulator in development and progression of many human malignancies. Small RNAs derived from cleavage of mature tRNAs have been implicated in many cellular stresses, but the detailed mechanisms that respond to lactic acid (LA; acidic lactate) are not well defined. Here, using an Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-immortalized B lymphoblastic cell line (LCL) as a model, we report that LA induces cleavage of mature tRNA at the anticodon loop, particularly production of three 5'-tRNA halves (5'-HisGUG, 5'-ValAAC, and 5'-GlyGCC), along with increased expression of RNA polymerase III and angiogenin (ANG). Of these, only the 5'-HisGUG half binds to the chromatin regulator argonaute-2 (AGO2) instead of the AGO1 protein for stability. Notably, the levels of ANG and 5'-HisGUG half expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from B cell lymphoma patients are tightly correlated with lactate dehydrogenase (LDH; a lactate indicator) in plasma. Silencing production of the 5'-HisGUG half by small interfering RNA or inhibition of ANG significantly reduces colony formation and growth of LA-induced tumor cells in vitro and in vivo using a murine xenograft model. Overall, our findings identify a novel molecular therapeutic target for the diagnosis and treatment of B cell lymphoma.

Epigenetic Regulation of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Latency

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is an oncogenic γ-herpesvirus that infects humans and exhibits a biphasic life cycle consisting of latent and lytic phases. Following entry into host cells, the KSHV genome undergoes circularization and chromatinization into an extrachromosomal episome ultimately leading to the establishment of latency. The KSHV episome is organized into distinct chromatin domains marked by variations in repressive or activating epigenetic modifications, including DNA methylation, histone methylation, and histone acetylation. Thus, the development of KSHV latency is believed to be governed by epigenetic regulation. In the past decade, interrogation of the KSHV epitome by genome-wide approaches has revealed a complex epigenetic mark landscape across KSHV genome and has uncovered the important regulatory roles of epigenetic modifications in governing the development of KSHV latency. Here, we highlight many of the findings regarding the role of DNA methylation, histone modification, post-translational modification (PTM) of chromatin remodeling proteins, the contribution of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in regulating KSHV latency development, and the role of higher-order episomal chromatin architecture in the maintenance of latency and the latent-to-lytic switch.

STUB1 is targeted by the SUMO-interacting motif of EBNA1 to maintain Epstein-Barr Virus latency

Latent Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is strongly associated with several malignancies, including B-cell lymphomas and epithelial tumors. EBNA1 is a key antigen expressed in all EBV-associated tumors during latency that is required for maintenance of the EBV episome DNA and the regulation of viral gene transcription. However, the mechanism utilized by EBV to maintain latent infection at the levels of posttranslational regulation remains largely unclear. Here, we report that EBNA1 contains two SUMO-interacting motifs (SIM2 and SIM3), and mutation of SIM2, but not SIM3, dramatically disrupts the EBNA1 dimerization, while SIM3 contributes to the polySUMO2 modification of EBNA1 at lysine 477 in vitro. Proteomic and immunoprecipitation analyses further reveal that the SIM3 motif is required for the EBNA1-mediated inhibitory effects on SUMO2-modified STUB1, SUMO2-mediated degradation of USP7, and SUMO1-modified KAP1. Deletion of the EBNA^SIM motif leads to functional loss of both EBNA1-mediated viral episome maintenance and lytic gene silencing. Importantly, hypoxic stress induces the SUMO2 modification of EBNA1, and in turn the dissociation of EBNA1 with STUB1, KAP1 and USP7 to increase the SUMO1 modification of both STUB1 and KAP1 for reactivation of lytic replication. Therefore, the EBNA1^SIM motif plays an essential role in EBV latency and is a potential therapeutic target against EBV-associated cancers.

The Small Ubiquitin-related modifier (SUMO) modification of proteins is a reversible post-translational regulation involved in control of gene transcription, among other functions. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infects most people worldwide and contributes to the development of several types of cancers due to its ability to induce cell proliferation and survival. EBNA1 is expressed in all forms of EBV-associated tumors. In this study, we found that EBNA1 contains a SUMO-interacting motif (SIM) named EBNA1^SIM, which is required for EBNA1 to exert inhibitory effects on a SUMO2-modified complex (SC2) including STUB1, KAP1 and USP7. Disruption of EBNA1^SIM leads to loss of both EBNA1-mediated viral episome maintenance and lytic gene silencing. Importantly, hypoxia-mediated reactivation of viral lytic replication induces the EBNA1 dissociation from STUB1 in the SC2 complex. This discovery not only opens a new insight on the interplay between host and virus, but it also provides a therapeutic target specific against EBV-associated cancers.

Targeting Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus ORF21 Tyrosine Kinase and Viral Lytic Reactivation by Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors Approved for Clinical Use

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is the cause of three human malignancies: Kaposi's sarcoma, primary effusion lymphoma, and the plasma cell variant of multicentric Castleman disease. Previous research has shown that several cellular tyrosine kinases play crucial roles during several steps in the virus replication cycle. Two KSHV proteins also have protein kinase function: open reading frame (ORF) 36 encodes a serine-threonine kinase, while ORF21 encodes a thymidine kinase (TK), which has recently been found to be an efficient tyrosine kinase. In this study, we explore the role of the ORF21 tyrosine kinase function in KSHV lytic replication. By generating a recombinant KSHV mutant with an enzymatically inactive ORF21 protein, we show that the tyrosine kinase function of ORF21/TK is not required for the progression of the lytic replication in tissue culture but that it is essential for the phosphorylation and activation to toxic moieties of the antiviral drugs zidovudine and brivudine. In addition, we identify several tyrosine kinase inhibitors, already in clinical use against human malignancies, which potently inhibit not only ORF21 TK kinase function but also viral lytic reactivation and the development of KSHV-infected endothelial tumors in mice. Since they target both cellular tyrosine kinases and a viral kinase, some of these compounds might find a use in the treatment of KSHV-associated malignancies.IMPORTANCE Our findings address the role of KSHV ORF21 as a tyrosine kinase during lytic replication and the activation of prodrugs in KSHV-infected cells. We also show the potential of selected clinically approved tyrosine kinase inhibitors to inhibit KSHV TK, KSHV lytic replication, infectious virion release, and the development of an endothelial tumor. Since they target both cellular tyrosine kinases supporting productive viral replication and a viral kinase, these drugs, which are already approved for clinical use, may be suitable for repurposing for the treatment of KSHV-related tumors in AIDS patients or transplant recipients.

Identification of viral SIM-SUMO2-interaction inhibitors for treating primary effusion lymphoma

Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) is an aggressive B-cell malignancy without effective treatment, and caused by the infection of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), predominantly in its latent form. Previously we showed that the SUMO2-interacting motif within the viral latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANASIM) is essential for establishment and maintenance of KSHV latency. Here, we developed a luciferase based live-cell reporter system to screen inhibitors selectively targeting the interaction between LANASIM and SUMO2. Cambogin, a bioactive natural product isolated from the Garcinia genus (a traditional herbal medicine used for cancer treatment), was obtained from the reporter system screening to efficiently inhibit the association of SUMO2 with LANASIM, in turn reducing the viral episome DNA copy number for establishment and maintenance of KSHV latent infection at a low concentration (nM). Importantly, Cambogin treatments not only specifically inhibited proliferation of KSHV-latently infected cells in vitro, but also induced regression of PEL tumors in a xenograft mouse model. This study has identified Cambogin as a novel therapeutic agent for treating PEL as well as eliminating persistent infection of oncogenic herpesvirus.

Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus LANA-Adjacent Regions with Distinct Functions in Episome Segregation or Maintenance

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) is a 1,162-amino-acid protein that mediates episome persistence of viral genomes. LANA binds the KSHV terminal-repeat (TR) sequence through its carboxy-terminal domain to mediate DNA replication. LANA simultaneously binds mitotic chromosomes and TR DNA to segregate virus genomes to daughter cell nuclei. Amino-terminal LANA attaches to chromosomes by binding histones H2A/H2B, and carboxy-terminal LANA contributes to mitotic-chromosome binding. Although amino- and carboxy-terminal LANA are essential for episome persistence, they are not sufficient, since deletion of all internal LANA sequence renders LANA highly deficient for episome maintenance. Internal LANA sequence upstream of the internal repeat elements contributes to episome segregation and persistence. Here, we investigate this region with a panel of LANA deletion mutants. Mutants retained the ability to associate with mitotic chromosomes and bind TR DNA. In contrast to prior results, deletion of most of this sequence did not reduce LANA's ability to mediate DNA replication. Deletions of upstream sequence within the region compromised segregation of TR DNA to daughter cells, as assessed by retention of green fluorescent protein (GFP) expression from a replication-deficient TR plasmid. However, deletion of this upstream sequence did not reduce episome maintenance. In contrast, deletions that included an 80-amino-acid sequence immediately downstream resulted in highly deficient episome persistence. LANA with this downstream sequence deleted maintained the ability to replicate and segregate TR DNA, suggesting a unique role for the residues. Therefore, this work identifies adjacent LANA regions with distinct roles in episome segregation and persistence.IMPORTANCE KSHV LANA mediates episomal persistence of viral genomes. LANA binds the KSHV terminal-repeat (TR) sequence to mediate DNA replication and tethers KSHV DNA to mitotic chromosomes to segregate genomes to daughter cell nuclei. Here, we investigate LANA sequence upstream of the internal repeat elements that contributes to episome segregation and persistence. Mutants with deletions within this sequence maintained the ability to bind mitotic chromosomes or bind and replicate TR DNA. Deletion of upstream sequence within the region reduced segregation of TR DNA to daughter cells, but not episome maintenance. In contrast, mutants with deletions of 80 amino acids immediately downstream were highly deficient for episome persistence yet maintained the ability to replicate and segregate TR DNA, the two principal components of episome persistence, suggesting another role for the residues. In summary, this work identifies adjacent LANA sequence with distinct roles in episome segregation and persistence.

Deregulation of the Notch pathway as a common road in viral carcinogenesis

The Notch pathway is a conserved signaling pathway and a form of direct cell-cell communication related to many biological processes during development and adulthood. Deregulation of the Notch pathway is involved in many diseases, including cancer. Almost 20% of all cancer cases have an infectious etiology, with viruses responsible for at least 1.5 million new cancer cases per year. Seven groups of viruses have been classified as oncogenic: hepatitis B and C viruses (HBV and HCV respectively), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Kaposi sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), human T lymphotropic virus (HTLV-1), human papillomavirus (HPV), and Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV). These viruses share the ability to manipulate a variety of cell pathways that are critical in proliferation and differentiation, leading to malignant transformation. Viral proteins interact directly or indirectly with different members of the Notch pathway, altering their normal function. This review focuses exclusively on the direct interactions of viral oncoproteins with Notch elements, providing a deeper understanding of the dual behavior of the Notch pathway as activator or suppressor of neoplasia in virus-related cancers.

Structural and functional analysis of SMO-1, the SUMO homolog in Caenorhabditis elegans

SUMO proteins are important post-translational modifiers involved in multiple cellular pathways in eukaryotes, especially during the different developmental stages in multicellular organisms. The nematode C. elegans is a well known model system for studying metazoan development and has a single SUMO homolog, SMO-1. Interestingly, SMO-1 modification is linked to embryogenesis and development in the nematode. However, high-resolution information about SMO-1 and the mechanism of its conjugation is lacking. In this work, we report the high-resolution three dimensional structure of SMO-1 solved by NMR spectroscopy. SMO-1 has flexible N-terminal and C-terminal tails on either side of a rigid beta-grasp folded core. While the sequence of SMO-1 is more similar to SUMO1, the electrostatic surface features of SMO-1 resemble more with SUMO2/3. SMO-1 can bind to typical SUMO Interacting Motifs (SIMs). SMO-1 can also conjugate to a typical SUMOylation consensus site as well as to its natural substrate HMR-1. Poly-SMO-1 chains were observed in-vitro even though SMO-1 lacks any consensus SUMOylation site. Typical deSUMOylation enzymes like Senp2 can cleave the poly-SMO-1 chains. Despite being a single gene, the SMO-1 structure allows it to function in a large repertoire of signaling pathways involving SUMO in C. elegans. Structural and functional features of SMO-1 studies described here will be useful to understand its role in development.

ZIC2 Is Essential for Maintenance of Latency and Is a Target of an Immediate Early Protein during Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Lytic Reactivation

Bivalent histone modifications are defined as repressive and activating epigenetic marks that simultaneously decorate the same genomic region. The H3K27me3 mark silences gene expression, while the H3K4me3 mark prevents the region from becoming permanently silenced and prepares the domain for activation when needed. Specific regions of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) latent episomes are poised to be activated by the KSHV replication and transcription activator (K-Rta). How KSHV episomes are prepared such that they maintain latent infection and switch to lytic replication by K-Rta remains unclear. K-Rta transactivation activity requires a protein degradation function; thus, we hypothesized that identification of cellular substrates of K-Rta may provide insight into the maintenance of KSHV latent infection and the switch to lytic replication. Here we show that a zinc finger protein, ZIC2, a key regulator for central nervous system development, is a substrate of K-Rta and is responsible for maintaining latency. K-Rta directly interacted with ZIC2 and functioned as an E3 ligase to ubiquitinate ZIC2. ZIC2 localized at immediate early and early gene cluster regions of the KSHV genome and contributed to tethering of polycomb repressive complex 2 through physical interaction, thus maintaining H3K27me3 marks at the K-Rta promoter. Accordingly, depletion of ZIC2 shifted the balance of bivalent histone modifications toward more active forms and induced KSHV reactivation in naturally infected cells. We suggest that ZIC2 turnover by K-Rta is a strategy employed by KSHV to favor the transition from latency to lytic replication.

IMPORTANCE Posttranslational histone modifications regulate the accessibility of transcriptional factors to DNA; thus, they have profound effects on gene expression (e.g., viral reactivation). KSHV episomes are known to possess bivalent chromatin domains. How such KSHV chromatin domains are maintained to be reactivatable by K-Rta remains unclear. We found that ZIC2, a transcriptional factor essential for stem cell pluripotency, plays a role in maintaining KSHV latent infection in naturally infected cells. We found that ZIC2 degradation by K-Rta shifts bivalent histone marks to a more active configuration, leading to KSHV reactivation. ZIC2 interacts with and maintains polycomb repressor complex 2 at the K-Rta promoter. Our findings uncover (i) a mechanism utilized by KSHV to maintain latent infection, (ii) a latency-lytic cycle switch operated by K-Rta, and (iii) a molecular mechanism of ZIC2-mediated local histone modification.

Epigenetics and Genetics of Viral Latency

Viral latency can be considered a metastable, nonproductive infection state that is capable of subsequent reactivation to repeat the infection cycle. Viral latent infections have numerous associated pathologies, including cancer, birth defects, neuropathy, cardiovascular disease, chronic inflammation, and immunological dysfunctions. The mechanisms controlling the establishment, maintenance, and reactivation from latency are complex and diversified among virus families, species, and strains. Yet, as examined in this review, common properties of latent viral infections can be defined. Eradicating latent virus has become an important but elusive challenge and will require a more complete understanding of the mechanisms controlling these processes.

Viral Interplay with the Host Sumoylation System

Viruses have evolved elaborate means to regulate diverse cellular pathways in order to create a cellular environment that facilitates viral survival and reproduction. This includes enhancing viral macromolecular synthesis and assembly, as well as preventing antiviral responses, including intrinsic, innate, and adaptive immunity. There are numerous mechanisms by which viruses mediate their effects on the host cell, and this includes targeting various cellular post-translational modification systems, including sumoylation. The wide-ranging impact of sumoylation on cellular processes such as transcriptional regulation, apoptosis, stress response, and cell cycle control makes it an attractive target for viral dysregulation. To date, proteins from both RNA and DNA virus families have been shown to be modified by SUMO conjugation, and this modification appears critical for viral protein function. More interestingly, members of the several viral families have been shown to modulate sumoylation, including papillomaviruses, adenoviruses, herpesviruses, orthomyxoviruses, filoviruses, and picornaviruses. This chapter will focus on mechanisms by which sumoylation both impacts human viruses and is used by viruses to promote viral infection and disease.

The Latency-Associated Nuclear Antigen of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus Inhibits Expression of SUMO/Sentrin-Specific Peptidase 6 To Facilitate Establishment of Latency

Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), which belongs to the Gammaherpesviridae, typically displays two different phases in its life cycle, the latent phase and the lytic phase. Latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA), the primary viral product during latency, has been reported to bind to a series of cellular gene promoters to modulate gene transcription. To systemically elucidate the cellular genes regulated by LANA, we identified genome-wide LANA binding sites by chromatin immunoprecipitation coupled with sequencing (ChIP-seq). We stratified ChIP-seq data and found that LANA might be involved in the macromolecule catabolic process. Specifically, we found and verified that LANA could directly bind to the promoter of the SUMO/sentrin-specific peptidase 6 (SENP6) gene in vivo and in vitro LANA could repress SENP6 promoter activity in a dose-dependent manner in a reporter gene assay. LANA expression was sufficient to inhibit endogenous SENP6 expression at both the RNA and protein levels. Moreover, SENP6 overexpression in KSHV-infected cells reduced LANA at the protein level. Mechanistically, we found that SENP6 could interact with LANA and reduce the formation of sumoylated LANA, which relies on the desumoylation ability of SENP6. During de novo infection, SENP6 overexpression would decrease the abundance of LANA and enhance viral gene expression, which would hamper the establishment of latency. Taken together, these data suggest that KSHV-encoded LANA could inhibit SENP6 expression to regulate the abundance of itself, which may play an important role in controlling the establishment of latency.IMPORTANCE LANA, as a key latent protein produced by KSHV, is responsible for episome persistence and regulates viral reactivation. In the present study, our results demonstrated that LANA could bind to the promoter region of the SENP6 gene and inhibit SENP6 expression while the regulated SENP6 could in turn modulate the abundance of LANA through desumoylation. This delicate regulation may provide important insights to explain the abundance of LANA during KSHV latency.

Modulation of global SUMOylation by Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus and its effects on viral gene expression

Some viruses have evolved to exploit the host SUMOylation system to regulate their own replication. Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) encodes K-bZIP, a SUMO E3 ligase catalyzing the SUMOylation of viral and host proteins. KSHV also encodes replication and transcriptional activator (RTA), a SUMO-targeted ubiquitin ligase catalyzing the ubiquitination of SUMOylated proteins and targeting them for degradation. Using chronic KSHV-infected TRE × BCBL-1 RTA cells, the expression kinetics of K-bZIP and RTA, and the global SUMOylation level were detected. The endogenous K-bZIP protein increased dramatically after the induction of the RTA gene that is tetracycline responsive, but then decreased rapidly after peaking at 8 h post tetracycline treatment. Consistently, the global SUMO-conjugated proteins increased and remained at high levels until 8 h, and decreased afterward, correlating with the expression kinetics of RTA and K-bZIP. In luciferase reporter assays, transfection of 293T cells with SUMO2 expression plasmid reduced the RTA transactivations of immediate-early genes k8, orf45, and orf50, but enhanced the RTA transactivations of other viral genes including orf57, pan, k2, orf8, and orf73. These results indicated that KSHV might regulate gene expression and viral replication schedule through modulation of the global SUMOylation level, probably via RTA, and RTA-regulated K-bZIP.

Hypoxia-inducible factor-1α plays roles in Epstein-Barr virus's natural life cycle and tumorigenesis by inducing lytic infection through direct binding to the immediate-early BZLF1 gene promoter

When confronted with poor oxygenation, cells adapt by activating survival signaling pathways, including the oxygen-sensitive transcriptional regulators called hypoxia-inducible factor alphas (HIF-αs). We report here that HIF-1α also regulates the life cycle of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Incubation of EBV-positive gastric carcinoma AGS-Akata and SNU-719 and Burkitt lymphoma Sal and KemIII cell lines with a prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor, L-mimosine or deferoxamine, or the NEDDylation inhibitor MLN4924 promoted rapid and sustained accumulation of both HIF-1α and lytic EBV antigens. ShRNA knockdown of HIF-1α significantly reduced deferoxamine-mediated lytic reactivation. HIF-1α directly bound the promoter of the EBV primary latent-lytic switch BZLF1 gene, Zp, activating transcription via a consensus hypoxia-response element (HRE) located at nt -83 through -76 relative to the transcription initiation site. HIF-1α did not activate transcription from the other EBV immediate-early gene, BRLF1. Importantly, expression of HIF-1α induced EBV lytic-gene expression in cells harboring wild-type EBV, but not in cells infected with variants containing base-pair substitution mutations within this HRE. Human oral keratinocyte (NOK) and gingival epithelial (hGET) cells induced to differentiate by incubation with either methyl cellulose or growth in organotypic culture accumulated both HIF-1α and Blimp-1α, another cellular factor implicated in lytic reactivation. HIF-1α activity also accumulated along with Blimp-1α during B-cell differentiation into plasma cells. Furthermore, most BZLF1-expressing cells observed in lymphomas induced by EBV in NSG mice with a humanized immune system were located distal to blood vessels in hypoxic regions of the tumors. Thus, we conclude that HIF-1α plays central roles in both EBV’s natural life cycle and EBV-associated tumorigenesis. We propose that drugs that induce HIF-1α protein accumulation are good candidates for development of a lytic-induction therapy for treating some EBV-associated malignancies.

Most adults throughout the world are infected with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a human herpesvirus frequently associated in a latent state with some cancers of epithelial and B-cell origin such as nasopharyngeal carcinoma and Burkitt lymphoma, respectively. To develop an oncolytic therapy for treating patients with EBV-associated cancers, we need a method to efficiently induce synthesis of lytic EBV proteins. The EBV protein encoded by its immediate-early BZLF1 gene usually mediates the switch into lytic viral infection. We show here that HIF-1α, a cellular transcription factor that accumulates in cells when deprived of normal levels of oxygen, can induce lytic EBV infection. HIF-1α mediates this switch by directly binding to a specific sequence located within the BZLF1 gene promoter, activating its expression. Importantly, we also show that deferoxamine, an FDA-approved drug that inhibits degradation of HIF-1α, can induce synthesis of lytic EBV proteins in some EBV-positive epithelial and lymphocytic cell lines. These findings indicate that HIF-1α-stabilizing drugs, administered in combination with nucleoside analogues such as ganciclovir, may be helpful as part of a lytic-induction therapy for treating some patients with EBV-positive malignancies.

Reactivation and Lytic Replication of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus: An Update

The life cycle of Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) consists of two phases, latent and lytic. The virus establishes latency as a strategy for avoiding host immune surveillance and fusing symbiotically with the host for lifetime persistent infection. However, latency can be disrupted and KSHV is reactivated for entry into the lytic replication. Viral lytic replication is crucial for efficient dissemination from its long-term reservoir to the sites of disease and for the spread of the virus to new hosts. The balance of these two phases in the KSHV life cycle is important for both the virus and the host and control of the switch between these two phases is extremely complex. Various environmental factors such as oxidative stress, hypoxia, and certain chemicals have been shown to switch KSHV from latency to lytic reactivation. Immunosuppression, unbalanced inflammatory cytokines, and other viral co-infections also lead to the reactivation of KSHV. This review article summarizes the current understanding of the initiation and regulation of KSHV reactivation and the mechanisms underlying the process of viral lytic replication. In particular, the central role of an immediate-early gene product RTA in KSHV reactivation has been extensively investigated. These studies revealed multiple layers of regulation in activation of RTA as well as the multifunctional roles of RTA in the lytic replication cascade. Epigenetic regulation is known as a critical layer of control for the switch of KSHV between latency and lytic replication. The viral non-coding RNA, PAN, was demonstrated to play a central role in the epigenetic regulation by serving as a guide RNA that brought chromatin remodeling enzymes to the promoters of RTA and other lytic genes. In addition, a novel dimension of regulation by microPeptides emerged and has been shown to regulate RTA expression at the protein level. Overall, extensive investigation of KSHV reactivation and lytic replication has revealed a sophisticated regulation network that controls the important events in KSHV life cycle.

Human Cytomegalovirus Latency: Approaching the Gordian Knot

Herpesviruses have evolved exquisite virus-host interactions that co-opt or evade a number of host pathways to enable the viruses to persist. Persistence of human cytomegalovirus (CMV), the prototypical betaherpesvirus, is particularly complex in the host organism. Depending on host physiology and the cell types infected, CMV persistence comprises latent, chronic, and productive states that may occur concurrently. Viral latency is a central strategy by which herpesviruses ensure their lifelong persistence. Although much remains to be defined about the virus-host interactions important to CMV latency, it is clear that checkpoints composed of viral and cellular factors exist to either maintain a latent state or initiate productive replication in response to host cues. CMV offers a rich platform for defining the virus-host interactions and understanding the host biology important to viral latency. This review describes current understanding of the virus-host interactions that contribute to viral latency and reactivation.

Epigenetic and genetic changes in soft tissue sarcomas: a review

Soft tissue sarcomas are a versatile group of tumors with a proposed origin from mesenchymal stem cells. During recent years, the molecular biologic mechanisms behind the histogenesis of these tumors have become clearer. In addition to translocations and other genomic changes, epigenetic mechanisms have been shown to be greatly involved in the histogenesis of sarcomas as well as other cancers. Even though the molecular mechanisms behind sarcomas appear to be more complex than previously expected, epigenetic mechanisms bring new opportunities and means for the treatment of these complex diseases.

Kaposi's Sarcoma Herpesvirus Genome Persistence

Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) has an etiologic role in Kaposi’s sarcoma, primary effusion lymphoma, and multicentric Castleman’s disease. These diseases are most common in immunocompromised individuals, especially those with AIDS. Similar to all herpesviruses, KSHV infection is lifelong. KSHV infection in tumor cells is primarily latent, with only a small subset of cells undergoing lytic infection. During latency, the KSHV genome persists as a multiple copy, extrachromosomal episome in the nucleus. In order to persist in proliferating tumor cells, the viral genome replicates once per cell cycle and then segregates to daughter cell nuclei. KSHV only expresses several genes during latent infection. Prominent among these genes, is the latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA). LANA is responsible for KSHV genome persistence and also exerts transcriptional regulatory effects. LANA mediates KSHV DNA replication and in addition, is responsible for segregation of replicated genomes to daughter nuclei. LANA serves as a molecular tether, bridging the viral genome to mitotic chromosomes to ensure that KSHV DNA reaches progeny nuclei. N-terminal LANA attaches to mitotic chromosomes by binding histones H2A/H2B at the surface of the nucleosome. C-terminal LANA binds specific KSHV DNA sequence and also has a role in chromosome attachment. In addition to the essential roles of N- and C-terminal LANA in genome persistence, internal LANA sequence is also critical for efficient episome maintenance. LANA’s role as an essential mediator of virus persistence makes it an attractive target for inhibition in order to prevent or treat KSHV infection and disease.

Recent advances in understanding Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus

Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS)-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is an oncogenic human herpesvirus. KSHV is associated with three cancers in the human population: KS, primary effusion lymphoma (PEL), and multicentric Castleman’s disease (MCD). KS is the leading cause of cancer in HIV-infected individuals. In this review, we discuss the most recent discoveries behind the mechanisms of KSHV latency maintenance and lytic replication. We also review current therapies for KSHV-associated cancers.

SUMO Modification Stabilizes Dengue Virus Nonstructural Protein 5 To Support Virus Replication

Small ubiquitin-like modifier (SUMO) participates in a reversible posttranslational modification process (SUMOylation) that regulates a wide variety of cellular processes and plays important roles for numerous viruses during infection. However, the roles of viral protein SUMOylation in dengue virus (DENV) infection have not been elucidated. In this study, we found that the SUMOylation pathway was involved in the DENV life cycle, since DENV replication was reduced by silencing the cellular gene Ubc9, which encodes the sole E2-conjugating enzyme required for SUMOylation. By in vivo and in vitro SUMOylation assays, the DENV NS5 protein was identified as an authentic SUMO-targeted protein. By expressing various NS5 mutants, we found that the SUMO acceptor sites are located in the N-terminal domain of NS5 and that a putative SUMO-interacting motif (SIM) of this domain is crucial for its SUMOylation. A DENV replicon harboring the SUMOylation-defective SIM mutant showed a severe defect in viral RNA replication, supporting the notion that NS5 SUMOylation is required for DENV replication. SUMOylation-defective mutants also failed to suppress the induction of STAT2-mediated host antiviral interferon signaling. Furthermore, the SUMOylation of NS5 significantly increased the stability of NS5 protein, which could account for most of the biological functions of SUMOylated NS5. Collectively, these findings suggest that the SUMOylation of DENV NS5 is one of the mechanisms regulating DENV replication.

IMPORTANCE SUMOylation is a common posttranslational modification that regulates cellular protein functions but has not been reported in the proteins of dengue virus. Here, we found that the replicase of DENV, nonstructural protein 5 (NS5), can be SUMOylated. It is well known that providing RNA-dependent RNA polymerase activity and antagonizing host antiviral IFN signaling are a “double indemnity” of NS5 to support DENV replication. Without SUMOylation, NS5 fails to maintain its protein stability, which consequently disrupts its function in viral RNA replication and innate immunity antagonism. DENV threatens billions of people worldwide, but no licensed vaccine or specific therapeutics are currently available. Thus, our findings suggest that rather than specifically targeting NS5 enzyme activity, NS5 protein stability is a novel drug target on the growing list of anti-DENV strategies.

Next-Generation Sequencing in the Understanding of Kaposi's Sarcoma-Associated Herpesvirus (KSHV) Biology

Non-Sanger-based novel nucleic acid sequencing techniques, referred to as Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS), provide a rapid, reliable, high-throughput, and massively parallel sequencing methodology that has improved our understanding of human cancers and cancer-related viruses. NGS has become a quintessential research tool for more effective characterization of complex viral and host genomes through its ever-expanding repertoire, which consists of whole-genome sequencing, whole-transcriptome sequencing, and whole-epigenome sequencing. These new NGS platforms provide a comprehensive and systematic genome-wide analysis of genomic sequences and a full transcriptional profile at a single nucleotide resolution. When combined, these techniques help unlock the function of novel genes and the related pathways that contribute to the overall viral pathogenesis. Ongoing research in the field of virology endeavors to identify the role of various underlying mechanisms that control the regulation of the herpesvirus biphasic lifecycle in order to discover potential therapeutic targets and treatment strategies. In this review, we have complied the most recent findings about the application of NGS in Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) biology, including identification of novel genomic features and whole-genome KSHV diversities, global gene regulatory network profiling for intricate transcriptome analyses, and surveying of epigenetic marks (DNA methylation, modified histones, and chromatin remodelers) during de novo, latent, and productive KSHV infections.

Cell Cycle Regulatory Functions of the KSHV Oncoprotein LANA

Manipulation of cell cycle is a commonly employed strategy of viruses for achieving a favorable cellular environment during infection. Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), the primary etiological agent of several human malignancies including Kaposi’s sarcoma, and primary effusion lymphoma, encodes several oncoproteins that deregulate normal physiology of cell cycle machinery to persist with endothelial cells and B cells and subsequently establish a latent infection. During latency, only a small subset of viral proteins is expressed. Latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) is one of the latent antigens shown to be essential for transformation of endothelial cells in vitro. It has been well demonstrated that LANA is critical for the maintenance of latency, episome DNA replication, segregation and gene transcription. In this review, we summarize recent studies and address how LANA functions as an oncoprotein to steer host cell cycle-related events including proliferation and apoptosis by interacting with various cellular and viral factors, and highlight the potential therapeutic strategy of disrupting LANA-dependent signaling as targets in KSHV-associated cancers.

KSHV Genome Replication and Maintenance

Kaposi's sarcoma associated herpesvirus (KSHV) or human herpesvirus 8 (HHV8) is a major etiological agent for multiple severe malignancies in immune-compromised patients. KSHV establishes lifetime persistence in the infected individuals and displays two distinct life cycles, generally a prolonged passive latent, and a short productive or lytic cycle. During latent phase, the viral episome is tethered to the host chromosome and replicates once during every cell division. Latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) is a predominant multifunctional nuclear protein expressed during latency, which plays a central role in episome tethering, replication and perpetual segregation of the episomes during cell division. LANA binds cooperatively to LANA binding sites (LBS) within the terminal repeat (TR) region of the viral episome as well as to the cellular nucleosomal proteins to tether viral episome to the host chromosome. LANA has been shown to modulate multiple cellular signaling pathways and recruits various cellular proteins such as chromatin modifying enzymes, replication factors, transcription factors, and cellular mitotic framework to maintain a successful latent infection. Although, many other regions within the KSHV genome can initiate replication, KSHV TR is important for latent DNA replication and possible segregation of the replicated episomes. Binding of LANA to LBS favors the recruitment of various replication factors to initiate LANA dependent DNA replication. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanisms relevant to KSHV genome replication, segregation, and maintenance of latency.

Human Oncogenic Herpesvirus and Post-translational Modifications - Phosphorylation and SUMOylation

Pathogens, especially viruses, evolve abilities to utilize cellular machineries to facilitate their survival and propagation. Post-translational modifications (PTMs), especially phosphorylation and SUMOylation, that reversibly modulate the function and interactions of target proteins are among the most important features in cell signaling pathways. PTM-dependent events also serve as one of the favorite targets for viruses. Among the seven unambiguous human oncogenic viruses, hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), human papillomavirus (HPV), Human T lymphotrophic virus-1 (HTLV-1), and Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV), two are herpesviruses. The life cycle of herpesviruses consists of latent and lytic phases and the rapid switch between these states includes global remodeling of the viral genome from heterochromatin-to-euchromatin. The balance between lytic replication and latency is essential for herpesvirus to maintain a persistent infection through a combination of viral propagation and evasion of the host immune response, which consequently may contribute to tumorigenesis. It is no surprise that the swift reversibility of PTMs, especially SUMOylation, a modification that epigenetically regulates chromatin structure, is a major hijack target of the host for oncogenic herpesviruses. In this brief review, we summarize the varied ways in which herpesviruses engage the host immune components through PTMs, focusing on phosphorylation and SUMOylation.

K-bZIP Mediated SUMO-2/3 Specific Modification on the KSHV Genome Negatively Regulates Lytic Gene Expression and Viral Reactivation

SUMOylation is associated with epigenetic regulation of chromatin structure and transcription. Epigenetic modifications of herpesviral genomes accompany the transcriptional switch of latent and lytic genes during the virus life cycle. Here, we report a genome-wide comparison of SUMO paralog modification on the KSHV genome. Using chromatin immunoprecipitation in conjunction with high-throughput sequencing, our study revealed highly distinct landscape changes of SUMO paralog genomic modifications associated with KSHV reactivation. A rapid and widespread deposition of SUMO-2/3, compared with SUMO-1, modification across the KSHV genome upon reactivation was observed. Interestingly, SUMO-2/3 enrichment was inversely correlated with H3K9me3 mark after reactivation, indicating that SUMO-2/3 may be responsible for regulating the expression of viral genes located in low heterochromatin regions during viral reactivation. RNA-sequencing analysis showed that the SUMO-2/3 enrichment pattern positively correlated with KSHV gene expression profiles. Activation of KSHV lytic genes located in regions with high SUMO-2/3 enrichment was enhanced by SUMO-2/3 knockdown. These findings suggest that SUMO-2/3 viral chromatin modification contributes to the diminution of viral gene expression during reactivation. Our previous study identified a SUMO-2/3-specific viral E3 ligase, K-bZIP, suggesting a potential role of this enzyme in regulating SUMO-2/3 enrichment and viral gene repression. Consistent with this prediction, higher K-bZIP binding on SUMO-2/3 enrichment region during reactivation was observed. Moreover, a K-bZIP SUMO E3 ligase dead mutant, K-bZIP-L75A, in the viral context, showed no SUMO-2/3 enrichment on viral chromatin and higher expression of viral genes located in SUMO-2/3 enriched regions during reactivation. Importantly, virus production significantly increased in both SUMO-2/3 knockdown and KSHV K-bZIP-L75A mutant cells. These results indicate that SUMO-2/3 modification of viral chromatin may function to counteract KSHV reactivation. As induction of herpesvirus reactivation may activate cellular antiviral regimes, our results suggest that development of viral SUMO E3 ligase specific inhibitors may be an avenue for anti-virus therapy.

Proteomic profiling identifies the SIM-associated complex of KSHV-encoded LANA

The Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) encoded latent nuclear antigen latency-associated nuclear antigen (LANA) plays an essential role in viral episome maintenance. LANA also contributes to DNA replication and tumorigenesis during latency. Recent studies suggested that LANA was involved in regulation of SUMOylation, which results in chromatin silencing. To examine the pleiotropic effects of LANA protein on host cell gene expression, we utilized MS analysis to identify cellular proteins associated with the small ubiquitin related modifier (SUMO) interacting motif of LANA (LANA(SIM)). In addition to the six bands identified as substantially associated with LANA(SIM), 151 proteins were positively identified by MS/MS analysis. Compared with previous proteomic analysis of the N- and C-truncated mutants of LANA (LANA(NC)), our results revealed that a complex of specific proteins with relatively high SUMOylation and SIM motifs is associated with LANA(SIM). Intriguingly, consistent with our previous report that identified KAP1 as a key component, the in vitro SUMO-2-modified isoform has a substantially higher affinity with LANA(SIM) than the SUMO-1-modified isoform. Moreover, via cluster and pathway analysis, we proposed a hypothetical model for the LANA(SIM) regulatory circuit involving aberrant SUMOylation of cell cycle (particular mitotic), DNA unwinding and replication, and pre-mRNA/mRNA processing related proteins. This study provides a SUMOylated and non-SUMOylated proteome profile of LANA(SIM) -associated complex and facilitates our understanding that viral-mediated gene regulation through SUMOylation is important for Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus persistence and pathogenesis.