Protein-directed ribosomal frameshifting temporally regulates gene expression.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 28593994.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/ncomms15582 and PMC identifier 5472766.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Programmed -1 ribosomal frameshifting is a mechanism of gene expression, whereby specific signals within messenger RNAs direct a proportion of translating ribosomes to shift -1 nt and continue translating in the new reading frame. Such frameshifting normally occurs at a set ratio and is utilized in the expression of many viral genes and a number of cellular genes. An open question is whether proteins might function as trans-acting switches to turn frameshifting on or off in response to cellular conditions. Here we show that frameshifting in a model RNA virus, encephalomyocarditis virus, is trans-activated by viral protein 2A. As a result, the frameshifting efficiency increases from 0 to 70% (one of the highest known in a mammalian system) over the course of infection, temporally regulating the expression levels of the viral structural and enzymatic proteins.
Medical subject headings
- Encephalomyocarditis virus
- Frameshifting, Ribosomal
- Gene Expression Regulation, Viral
- Inverted Repeat Sequences
- Protein Biosynthesis
- Viral Proteins