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Published on: December 29, 2015
Rab27a is required for human cytomegalovirus assembly
Alberto Fraile-Ramos1, Victoria Cepeda, Edo Elstak
1Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Madrid, Spain. alberto.fraile@cnb.csic.es
Plos One
|December 21, 2010
Summary
Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) production requires Rab27a, a protein involved in organelle transport. This study reveals Rab27a
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Cell Biology
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) envelopment and release mechanisms remain unclear.
- HCMV final envelopment occurs on intracellular membranes before cell egress.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of Rab27a, a known regulator of lysosome-related organelle (LRO) transport, in HCMV production.
- To elucidate the molecular mechanisms governing HCMV assembly and release.
Main Methods:
- Studied Rab27a expression and localization during HCMV infection.
- Utilized immuno-gold labeling to assess Rab27a association with viral envelopes.
- Performed knock-down experiments and analyzed HCMV production in Rab27a-deficient cells (ashen melanocytes).
Main Results:
- HCMV infection upregulated Rab27a expression and recruited it to intracellular assembly sites.
- Rab27a was found associated with viral envelopes via immuno-gold labeling.
- Reduced HCMV production was observed following Rab27a knock-down and in Rab27a-deficient cells.
Conclusions:
- Rab27a is essential for the HCMV life cycle, specifically for viral production.
- HCMV appears to utilize molecular machinery common to lysosome-related organelle biogenesis for its envelopment and release.
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