Herpesviruses: hijacking the Ras signaling pathway
Harilaos Filippakis1, Demetrios A Spandidos, George Sourvinos
1Department of Clinical Virology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion 71003, Crete, Greece.
Biochimica Et Biophysica Acta
|March 23, 2010
Summary
Herpesviruses, particularly gamma-herpesviruses, impact host cell Ras signaling pathways, influencing cancer development. Understanding these viral interactions with Ras proteins offers potential therapeutic targets for both viral infections and cancer.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Virology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- Cancer arises from accumulated genetic alterations.
- Gamma-herpesviruses are implicated in cancer biology, aiding understanding of cell signaling and malignancy.
- Herpesviruses establish latent infections and can deliver or induce cellular oncogenes, disrupting cell cycle control.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the impact of herpesvirus infection on the host-cell Ras signaling pathway.
- To outline interactions between viral proteins and key Ras pathway molecules.
- To explore the oncogenic potential and therapeutic implications of these interactions.
Main Methods:
- Literature review focusing on herpesvirus-Ras pathway interactions.
- Analysis of how viral proteins modulate Ras signaling cascades.
- Examination of the role of Ras proteins in viral oncogenesis.
Main Results:
- Herpesviruses interact with key Ras signaling molecules like phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3-K), Raf, and RALGDS.
- These interactions can influence cell proliferation, survival, differentiation, and apoptosis.
- Viral modulation of Ras signaling is crucial for herpesviruses' oncogenic or oncomodulatory behavior.
Conclusions:
- Herpesvirus interactions with the Ras pathway are significant in cancer development.
- Viral proteins hijacking Ras signaling may be therapeutic targets for cancer and viral infections.
- Further understanding of virus-induced oncogenesis can advance cancer research.
Related Concept Videos
02:38The Ras Gene
The Ras-gene-encoded proteins are regulators of signaling pathways controlling cell proliferation, differentiation, or cell survival. The Ras-gene family in humans constitutes three primary members—the HRas, NRas, and KRas. These genes code for four functionally distinct yet closely related proteins—the HRas, NRas, KRas4A, and KRas4B. The involvement of mutant Ras genes in human cancer was first discovered in 1982 and is among the most common causes of human tumorigenesis.
Ras is a superfamily...
Ras is a superfamily...
01:07MAPK Signaling Cascades
Mitogen-activated protein kinase, or MAPK pathway, activates three sequential kinases to regulate cellular responses such as proliferation, differentiation, survival, and apoptosis. The canonical MAPK pathway starts with a mitogen or growth factor binding to an RTK. The activated RTKs stimulate Ras, which recruits Raf or MAP3 Kinase (MAPKKK), the first kinase of the MAPK signaling cascade. Raf further phosphorylates and activates MEK or MAP2 Kinases (MAPKK), which in turn phosphorylates MAP...
02:38The Ras Gene
The Ras-gene-encoded proteins are regulators of signaling pathways controlling cell proliferation, differentiation, or cell survival. The Ras-gene family in humans constitutes three primary members—the HRas, NRas, and KRas. These genes code for four functionally distinct yet closely related proteins—the HRas, NRas, KRas4A, and KRas4B. The involvement of mutant Ras genes in human cancer was first discovered in 1982 and is among the most common causes of human tumorigenesis.
Ras is a superfamily...
Ras is a superfamily...
01:28Herpes
Herpes simplex type 1 (HSV‑1) is a widespread pathogen responsible for orolabial lesions. It is an enveloped, double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) virus belonging to the family Herpesviridae. Once the virus infects a host cell, its double‑stranded DNA genome is delivered into the nucleus, where a coordinated cascade of immediate‑early, early, and late gene expression directs viral DNA replication, structural protein synthesis, and virion assembly. After primary infection of epithelial cells, HSV-1...
01:20The JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway
Several cytokine receptors have tightly bound Janus kinase or JAK proteins attached at their cytosolic tail. Small signaling molecules such as cytokines, growth hormones, or prolactins bind to the cytokine receptors and initiate their dimerization. The dimerization brings the cytosolic JAKs together that trans-phosphorylate and activates each other. The activated JAKs now phosphorylate cytosolic tails of the cytokine receptors, which serve as binding sites for adaptor proteins such as SH2...
01:03Rous Sarcoma Virus (RSV) and Cancer
Rous Sarcoma virus or RSV was discovered by F. Peyton Rous in the year 1911 as a filterable transmissible agent that could cause tumors in chickens. He won a Nobel Prize for this discovery in 1966. His experiments clearly demonstrated that some cancers could be caused by infectious agents and led to the discovery of many more cancer-causing viruses in animals as well as humans.
RSV is a retrovirus that contains two copies of a plus-strand RNA genome. Its genome consists of four main open...
RSV is a retrovirus that contains two copies of a plus-strand RNA genome. Its genome consists of four main open...