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Masucci, M. G.

Publications and source records attributed to Masucci, M. G..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Differential regulation of translational stress responses by herpesvirus ubiquitin deconjugases

The strategies adopted by viruses to counteract the potential antiviral effects of the ribosomal quality control (RQC) that regulates the fidelity of protein translation, ribosome recycling, and the activation of ribosomal and integrates stress responses are poorly understood. Here, we investigated the capacity of the viral ubiquitin deconjugase (vDUB) encoded in the large tegument protein of human pathogenic herpesviruses to interfere with the triggering of RQC upon the induction of translational stress in cytosolic and endoplasmic reticulum (ER)- associated ribosome. We found that the capacity of the vDUBs encoded by Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), and Kaposi sarcoma virus (KSHV) to counteract the ubiquitination of RPS10, RPS20, and RPS3, and the UFMylation of RPL26 in cells treated with translation elongation inhibitor anisomycin (ANS) correlated with the rescue of model RQC and ER-RQC substrates from proteasome- and lysosome-dependent degradation, promoted the readthrough of stall-inducing mRNAs, and prevented ER-phagy. In contrast, while rescuing the RQC substrate and inhibiting the ubiquitination of RPS10, RPS20, and RPS3 as almost efficiently as the homologs, the Herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV1) encoded vDUB failed to counteract RPL26 UFMylation and did not rescue the ER-RQC substrate or inhibit ER-phagy. Thus, it appears that the different lifestyles of herpesviruses may have promoted the development of distinct strategies for coping with the antiviral effect of ribosome stress responses.

cell biology↗

Remodeling of the Ribosomal Quality Control and Protein Translation by a Viral Ubiquitin Deconjugase

The strategies adopted by viruses to reprogram the protein translation and quality control machineries to promote infection are poorly understood. Here, we discovered that the viral ubiquitin deconjugase (vDUB) encoded in the large tegument protein of Epstein- Barr virus (EBV) regulates ribosomal stress responses. The vDUB participates in protein complexes that include the ubiquitin ligases ZNF598 and LTN1 and the UFM1 ligase UFL1. Upon ribosomal stalling, the vDUB counteracts the ubiquitination of 40S ribosome subunits, inhibits the degradation of translation-stalled polypeptides by the proteasome, and prevents UFMylation of the 60S particle, which impairs the ER-phagy- dependent clearance of stalled products. Inhibition of the ribosome quality control activates a GCN2-dependent integrated stress response that decreases global protein translation while promoting the readthrough of stall-inducing mRNAs. The vDUB enhances viral mRNAs translation and virus release during productive infection, pointing to a pivotal role in cell reprogramming that enables virus production and underlies the pathogenesis of EBV-associated cancers and autoimmune diseases. GRAPHIC SUMMARY O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=151 SRC="FIGDIR/small/526464v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (28K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1c7421dorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@c59b8dorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1676b4eorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@b5e111_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

cell biology↗

Inhibition of selective autophagy by members of the herpesvirus ubiquitin-deconjugase family

Autophagy is an important component of the innate immune response that restricts infection by different types of pathogens. Viruses have developed multiple strategies to avoid autophagy to complete their replication cycle and promote spreading to new hosts. Here we report that the ubiquitin deconjugases encoded in the N-terminal domain of the large tegument proteins of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Kaposi Sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV), but not herpes simplex virus-1 (HSV-1), regulate selective autophagy by inhibiting the activity of the autophagy receptor SQSTM1/p62. We found that all the homologs bind to and deubiquitinate SQSTM1/p62 but with variable efficiency, which correlates with their capacity to prevent the colocalization of LC3 with SQSTM1/p62 aggregates and promote the accumulation of a model autophagy substrate. The findings highlight important differences in the strategies by which herpesviruses interfere with selective autophagy.

cell biology↗

The Epstein-Barr virus ubiquitin deconjugase BPLF1 regulates the activity of Topoisomerase II during virus replication

Topoisomerases are essential for the replication of herpesviruses but the mechanisms by which the viruses hijack the cellular enzymes are largely unknown. We found that topoisomerase-II (TOP2) is a substrate of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) ubiquitin deconjugase BPLF1. BPLF1 selectively inhibited the ubiquitination of TOP2 following treatment with topoisomerase poisons, interacted with TOP2 and TOP2{beta} in co-immunoprecipitation and in vitro pull-down, stabilized Etoposide-trapped TOP2 cleavage complexes (TOP2cc) and promoted TOP2 SUMOylation, which halted the DNA-damage response and reduced Etoposide toxicity. Induction of the productive virus cycle promoted the accumulation of TOP2{beta}cc, enhanced TOP2{beta} SUMOylation, and reduced Etoposide toxicity in lymphoblastoid cell lines carrying recombinant EBV encoding the active enzyme. Attenuation of this phenotype upon expression of a catalytic mutant BPLF1-C61A impaired viral DNA synthesis and virus release. These findings highlight a previously unrecognized function of BPLF1 in promoting non-proteolytic pathways for TOP2cc debulking that favor cell survival and virus production.

microbiology↗