Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 15, 2026

Transsynaptic Tracing from Peripheral Targets with Pseudorabies Virus Followed by Cholera Toxin and Biotinylated Dextran Amines Double Labeling
13:12

Transsynaptic Tracing from Peripheral Targets with Pseudorabies Virus Followed by Cholera Toxin and Biotinylated Dextran Amines Double Labeling

Published on: September 14, 2015

13.9K

Us9-Independent Axonal Sorting and Transport of the Pseudorabies Virus Glycoprotein gM

R Kratchmarov1, L W Enquist1, M P Taylor2

  • 1Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, USA.

Journal of Virology
|April 3, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) glycoprotein M (gM) can be transported down axons independently of the Us9 protein. This Us9-independent mechanism highlights unique axonal transport properties of gM in viral infections.

Area of Science:

  • Neurovirology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • Axonal transport is crucial for neuronal function and can be hijacked by viruses.
  • Pseudorabies virus (PRV) assembly and axonal transport typically rely on the viral Us9 protein.
  • Understanding viral protein transport mechanisms is key to deciphering viral pathogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mechanism of axonal localization for PRV glycoprotein M (gM).
  • To determine if gM axonal transport is dependent on the Us9 protein.
  • To characterize the properties of gM axonal transport compared to other viral proteins.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized fluorescently tagged gM (gM-mCherry) to visualize axonal transport in real-time.
  • Analyzed anterograde transport of gM assemblies within axons.
  • Employed Western blotting to detect unlabeled gM in isolated axons during infection with a Us9-null PRV strain.

Main Results:

  • Detected gM-mCherry assemblies undergoing anterograde transport in axons.
  • Confirmed the presence of unlabeled gM in isolated axons from Us9-null PRV infections.
  • Showed that glycoprotein B (gB) was not detected in axons under similar conditions, unlike gM.

Conclusions:

  • Viral glycoprotein M (gM) utilizes a Us9-independent pathway for axonal localization.
  • gM exhibits distinct axonal transport properties compared to other PRV proteins like gB.
  • This Us9-independent mechanism offers a novel perspective on viral protein trafficking in neurons.

More Related Videos

Viral Tracing of Genetically Defined Neural Circuitry13:06

Viral Tracing of Genetically Defined Neural Circuitry

Published on: October 17, 2012

19.2K
Imaging the Intracellular Trafficking of APP with Photoactivatable GFP07:55

Imaging the Intracellular Trafficking of APP with Photoactivatable GFP

Published on: October 17, 2015

12.5K

Related Concept Videos

Rab Proteins01:14

Rab Proteins

Rab proteins constitute the largest family of monomeric GTPases, of which 70 members are present in humans. Rab proteins and their effectors regulate consecutive stages of vesicle transport such as vesicle transport, docking, and fusion to the correct recipient membrane.
Rab proteins switch between a cytosolic, GDP-bound inactive state and a membrane-anchored, GTP-bound active state. By themselves, Rabs show slow rates of GDP/GTP exchange and GTP hydrolysis. Thus, Rab proteins are considered...
5.5K
Coat Assembly and GTPases01:33

Coat Assembly and GTPases

Vesicles incorporate different coat protein subunits in different cell locations, which changes the properties of the coat, such as the shape and geometry of the transport vesicles. Thus, vesicle coat proteins also play a significant role in cargo selection.
Coat assembly depends on the local availability of phosphatidylinositol phosphates or PIPs and GTP-binding proteins. Adaptor proteins, which link the coat proteins to the membrane, bind to these PIPs and play a crucial role in controlling...
4.8K
Rab Cascades01:25

Rab Cascades

Rab GTPases act in a regulated cascade during membrane fusion, helping the lipid bilayers mix. The Rab family of proteins are active when bound to GTP, and inactive when bound to GDP. Hence, they act as guanine nucleotide-dependent molecular switches. Rab-GTP recognizes and binds to long or short-range tethering proteins to capture the target vesicle. These tethers coordinate with SNAREs on the vesicle and the target membrane to assemble the trans SNARE complex that locks the mixing bilayers.
3.8K
Overview of Protein Sorting and Transport01:45

Overview of Protein Sorting and Transport

Eukaryotic cells have different membrane-bound organelles with distinct protein requirements. The process by which proteins are targeted to a specific organelle is called protein sorting.
Protein sorting can be of two types: signal-based sorting and vesicle-based trafficking. In signal-based sorting, specific amino acid sequences called sorting signals target proteins to the proper location inside the cell either via gated transport or by protein translocation.  In gated transport, folded...
23.6K
Intracellular Movement of Viruses and Bacteria01:10

Intracellular Movement of Viruses and Bacteria

Intracellular bacteria and viruses often comprise a group of highly infectious pathogens that can cause several diseases. Bacterial pathogens include those belonging to the genus Rickettsia responsible for conditions such as rocky mountain spotted fever and the Mediterranean spotted fever; Chlamydia, a genus responsible for a sexually transmitted disease; Coxiella burnetii, an agent responsible for Q fever. Viral pathogens include vaccinia—a poxvirus, and herpes simplex virus—a...
3.9K
Nuclear Protein Sorting01:34

Nuclear Protein Sorting

Nuclear protein sorting is the selective trafficking of histones, polymerases, gene regulatory proteins into the nucleus and exporting RNAs and ribosomes to the cytosol. It is a tightly controlled process that regulates gene expression within a cell.
Proteins targeted to the nucleus carry nuclear localization signals or NLS recognized by import receptors in the cytosol. Similarly, proteins with nuclear export signals are recognized by export receptors. Import and export receptors are...
6.7K