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Evolution of linear motifs within the papillomavirus E7 oncoprotein
Lucía B Chemes1, Juliana Glavina, Julián Faivovich
1Protein Structure-Function and Engineering Laboratory, Fundación Instituto Leloir and IIBBA-CONICET, Patricias Argentinas 435 (1405), Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Journal of Molecular Biology
|June 12, 2012
Summary
Papillomavirus E7 oncoprotein linear motifs evolve rapidly, appearing and disappearing multiple times. This plasticity, including convergent evolution, impacts virus adaptation and host specificity.
Area of Science:
- Molecular Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Virology
Background:
- Protein functions often rely on short linear motifs, particularly in intrinsically disordered regions.
- The evolutionary dynamics of these motifs are not fully understood.
- Papillomaviruses offer a model system for studying protein structure and function evolution.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolutionary patterns of functional linear motifs in papillomavirus E7 oncoproteins.
- To understand the role of these motifs in viral evolution and adaptation.
- To explore potential cooperative interactions between motifs.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of motif inventory across over 200 papillomavirus E7 protein sequences.
- Statistical examination of motif co-occurrence and evolutionary patterns.
- Correlation analysis between motif presence and viral host specificity/tissue tropism.
Main Results:
- Identified key linear motifs in both disordered and globular domains of E7 proteins.
- Observed significant motif gain/loss events, indicating high evolutionary plasticity.
- Found evidence of convergent evolution for four specific motifs.
- Demonstrated motif evolution is independent of domain location (disordered vs. globular).
- Correlated motif presence with papillomavirus host specificity and tissue tropism.
Conclusions:
- Linear motifs in E7 oncoproteins exhibit remarkable evolutionary plasticity and are subject to convergent evolution.
- Motif evolution is independent of their location within intrinsically disordered or globular domains.
- These motifs likely contribute to the adaptive evolution of papillomaviruses, influencing host specificity and tissue tropism.
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