Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 7, 2026

siRNA Electroporation to Modulate Autophagy in Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1-Infected Monocyte-Derived Dendritic Cells
Published on: October 28, 2019
Macroautophagy Proteins Assist Epstein Barr Virus Production and Get Incorporated Into the Virus Particles
Heike Nowag1, Bruno Guhl2, Kerstin Thriene3
1Viral Immunobiology, Institute of Experimental Immunology, University of Zürich, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland.
Abstract:
Epstein Barr virus (EBV) persists as a latent herpes virus infection in the majority of the adult human population. The virus can reactivate from this latent infection into lytic replication for virus particle production. Here, we report that autophagic membranes, which engulf cytoplasmic constituents during macroautophagy and transport them to lysosomal degradation, are stabilized by lytic EBV replication in infected epithelial and B cells. Inhibition of autophagic membrane formation compromises infectious particle production and leads to the accumulation of viral DNA in the cytosol. Vice versa, pharmacological stimulation of autophagic membrane formation enhances infectious virus production. Atg8/LC3, an essential macroautophagy protein and substrate anchor on autophagic membranes, was found in virus preparations, suggesting that EBV recruits Atg8/LC3 coupled membranes to its envelope in the cytosol. Our data indicate that EBV subverts macroautophagy and uses autophagic membranes for efficient envelope acquisition during lytic infection.
Related Concept Videos
Intralumenal Vesicles and Multivesicular Bodies
Autophagy
An autophagic pathway consists of a series of signaling events activated in response to diverse stress and physiological conditions such as food deprivation,...
Delivery Pathways to the Lysosome
Endocytosis
In endocytosis, the cell membrane takes up macromolecules and particles from the surrounding medium. Clathrin-mediated...
Intracellular Movement of Viruses and Bacteria
Export of Misfolded Proteins out of the ER
Protein Complex Assembly
Many viruses self-assemble into a fully functional unit using the infected host cell to...

