Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 16, 2026

Dissecting Innate Immune Signaling in Viral Evasion of Cytokine Production
08:32

Dissecting Innate Immune Signaling in Viral Evasion of Cytokine Production

Published on: March 2, 2014

11.0K

Measles Virus Matrix Protein Inhibits Host Cell Transcription

Xuelian Yu1, Shadi Shahriari2, Hong-Mei Li3

  • 1Section of Epidemiology & Statistics, Department of Public Health, Xinjiang Medical University, 393 XinYi Road, Urumqi, PR China.

Plos One
|August 24, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Measles virus M protein inhibits host cell transcription early in infection. This finding reveals a new mechanism for measles virus pathogenesis and potential therapeutic targets.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cell Biology

Background:

  • Measles virus (MeV) remains a global health concern, causing epidemics and outbreaks.
  • The MeV M protein is crucial for virus assembly and pathogenesis.
  • M protein localization includes nucleus, cytoplasm, and cell membranes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the nuclear localization and function of MeV M protein.
  • To determine if MeV M protein inhibits host cell transcription.
  • To elucidate the role of M protein in early MeV infection.

Main Methods:

  • Transient expression of M protein in transfected cells.
  • In-cell transcription assays.
  • In vitro transcription inhibition assays.

Main Results:

  • MeV M protein localizes to the nucleus in a subset of transfected cells.
  • Nuclear M protein inhibits cellular transcription by binding nuclear factors.
  • MeV M protein inhibits in vitro transcription dose-dependently.
  • M protein is found in the nucleus of infected cells early in infection, correlating with transcriptional inhibition.

Conclusions:

  • MeV M protein can inhibit host cell transcription.
  • Nuclear localization of M protein plays a role in early MeV infection.
  • This M protein function offers a novel target for antiviral strategies against measles.

More Related Videos

Dissecting Host-virus Interaction in Lytic Replication of a Model Herpesvirus11:28

Dissecting Host-virus Interaction in Lytic Replication of a Model Herpesvirus

Published on: October 7, 2011

11.6K
Using Click Chemistry to Measure the Effect of Viral Infection on Host-Cell RNA Synthesis09:35

Using Click Chemistry to Measure the Effect of Viral Infection on Host-Cell RNA Synthesis

Published on: August 9, 2013

12.3K

Related Concept Videos

Eukaryotic Transcription Inhibitors01:52

Eukaryotic Transcription Inhibitors

Certain biochemical processes, such as embryonic development and cell growth regulation, depend on the repression of specific genes. DNA binding proteins known as eukaryotic transcription inhibitors regulate the repression of gene expression in eukaryotes. The presence of these inhibitors at the required location and time in the cell is triggered by the presence of hormones and additional signals from other cells.
Eukaryotic transcription inhibitors usually contain two distinct domains, a...
11.3K
Viruses with RNA Genomes01:29

Viruses with RNA Genomes

RNA viruses are categorized into positive-strand, negative-strand, or double-stranded groups based on their genomic structure and replication mechanisms. This classification dictates how they exploit host cellular machinery for protein synthesis and replication. Some RNA viruses also utilize reverse transcription as part of their life cycle, further diversifying their replication strategies.Positive-Strand RNA VirusesPositive-strand RNA viruses have genomes that function directly as messenger...
1.2K
Master Transcription Regulators02:23

Master Transcription Regulators

Master transcription regulators are regulatory proteins that are predominantly responsible for regulating the expression of multiple genes. Often these genes work in concert to drive a  complex process. Activation of a master transcription regulator can lead to a cascade of transcriptional activation necessary for that outcome. These regulators can directly bind to the regulatory sequences of the various genes involved, or they can indirectly regulate transcription by binding to regulatory...
8.0K
Leaky Scanning02:28

Leaky Scanning

During most eukaryotic translation processes, the small 40S ribosome subunit scans an mRNA from its 5' end until it encounters the first start AUG codon. The large 60S ribosomal subunit then joins the smaller one to initiate protein synthesis. The location of the translation initiation is largely determined by the nucleotides near the start codon as there may be multiple translation initiation sites present on the mRNA.  Marilyn Kozak discovered that the sequence RCCAUGG (where R...
5.8K
RNA Polymerase II Accessory Proteins02:36

RNA Polymerase II Accessory Proteins

Proteins that regulate transcription can do so either via direct contact with RNA Polymerase or through indirect interactions facilitated by adaptors, mediators, histone-modifying proteins, and nucleosome remodelers. Direct interactions to activate transcription is seen in bacteria as well as in some eukaryotic genes. In these cases, upstream activation sequences are adjacent to the promoters, and the activator proteins interact directly with the transcriptional machinery. For example, in...
11.3K
MAPK Signaling Cascades01:07

MAPK 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...
9.0K