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Functional Imaging of Viral Transcription Factories Using 3D Fluorescence Microscopy
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Regulation of Polyomavirus Transcription by Viral and Cellular Factors

June F Yang1, Jianxin You1

  • 1Department of Microbiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.

Viruses
|September 29, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Human polyomaviruses cause diseases like PML and MCC. This review details how viral gene expression, controlled by DNA elements, proteins, and cellular factors, influences polyomavirus pathogenesis.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Immunology

Background:

  • Polyomaviruses are common human pathogens, often latent but causing disease in immunocompromised individuals.
  • Pathogenic human polyomaviruses include JC polyomavirus (JCPyV), BK polyomavirus (BKPyV), and Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV).
  • These viruses are linked to serious conditions such as progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), nephropathy, and Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the transcriptional regulation mechanisms of pathogenic human polyomaviruses and SV40.
  • To highlight the roles of viral cis-acting DNA elements, encoded proteins, and microRNAs (miRNAs) in controlling viral gene expression.
  • To emphasize the influence of cellular transcription factors and epigenetic modifications on polyomavirus gene expression.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on polyomavirus transcriptional regulation.
  • Analysis of viral cis-acting DNA elements, viral proteins, and miRNAs.
  • Examination of cellular transcription factors and epigenetic modifications impacting viral gene expression.

Main Results:

  • Transcriptional control is crucial for polyomavirus tropism and disease progression.
  • Viral gene expression is modulated by viral DNA elements, proteins, and miRNAs.
  • Cellular factors, including transcription factors and epigenetic modifications, significantly regulate polyomavirus gene expression.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding polyomavirus transcriptional regulation is key to deciphering disease mechanisms.
  • Targeting viral gene expression pathways could offer therapeutic strategies.
  • Further research into host-pathogen interactions at the transcriptional level is warranted.
Keywords:
cell type-specific transcription factorscis-acting regulatory elementsepigenetic modificationspolyomavirustranscriptiontropism

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