Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
Pivot Concepts:   Target Concepts:
Query: EC:1.5.1.3 (dihydrofolate reductase)
 5,819 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Vaccinia virus has evolved multiple mechanisms to counteract the interferon-induced antiviral host cell response. Recently, two vaccinia virus gene products were shown to interfere with the activity of the double-stranded RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR): the K3L gene product and the E3L gene product. We have evaluated the efficiency by which these gene products inhibit PKR and whether they act in a synergistic manner. The effects of the two vaccinia virus gene products were compared in an in vivo system in which translation of a reporter gene (dihydrofolate reductase or eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha [eIF-2 alpha]) was inhibited because of the localized activation of PKR. In this system, the E3L gene product, and to a lesser extent the K3L gene product, potentiated translation of the reporter gene and inhibited eIF-2 alpha phosphorylation. Analysis in vitro demonstrated that the E3L gene product inhibited PKR approximately 50- to 100-fold more efficiently than the K3L gene product. However, further studies demonstrated that the mechanism of action of these two inhibitors was different. Whereas the E3L inhibitor interfered with the binding of the kinase to double-stranded RNA, the K3L inhibitor did not. We propose that the K3L inhibitor acts through its homology to eIF-2 alpha to interfere with the interaction of eIF-2 alpha with PKR. The two inhibitors did not display a synergistic effect on translation or eIF-2 alpha phosphorylation. In addition, neither K3L nor E3L expression detectably altered cellular protein synthesis.
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PMID:The E3L and K3L vaccinia virus gene products stimulate translation through inhibition of the double-stranded RNA-dependent protein kinase by different mechanisms. 809 59

Upon binding to double-stranded (ds) RNA, the dsRNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR) sequentially undergoes autophosphorylation and activation. Activated PKR may exist as a dimer and phosphorylates the eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha subunit (cIF-2 alpha) to inhibit polypeptide chain initiation. Transfection of COS-1 cells with a plasmid cDNA expression vector encoding a marker gene, activates endogenous PKR, and selectively inhibits translation of the marker mRNA, dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR). This system was used to study the dsRNA binding and dimerization requirements for over-expressed PKR mutants and subdomains to affect DHFR translation. DHFR translation was rescued by expression of either an ATP hydrolysis defective mutant PKR K296P, the amino-terminal 1-243 fragment containing two dsRNA binding motifs, or the isolated first RNA binding motif (amino acids 1-123). Mutation of K64E within the dsRNA binding motif 1 destroyed dsRNA binding and the ability to rescue DHFR translation. Immunoprecipitation of T7 epitope-tagged PKR derivatives from cell lysates detected interaction between intact PKR and the amino-terminal 1-243 fragment as well as a 1-243 fragment harboring the K64E mutation. Expression of adenovirus VAI RNA, a potent inhibitor of PKR activity, did not disrupt this interaction. In contrast, intact PKR did not interact with fragments containing the first dsRNA binding motif (1-123), the second dsRNA binding motif (98-243), or the isolated PKR kinase catalytic domain (228-551). These results demonstrate that the translational stimulation mediated by the dominant negative PKR mutant does not require dimerization, but requires the ability to bind dsRNA and indicate these mutants act by competition for binding to activators.
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PMID:Double-stranded (ds) RNA binding and not dimerization correlates with the activation of the dsRNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR). 857 79