title: The equine herpesvirus 2 E1 open reading frame encodes a functional chemokine receptor.
abstract: Several herpesviruses contain open reading frames (ORFs) that encode potential homologs of eucaryotic genes. Equine herpesvirus 2 (EHV-2) is a gammaherpesvirus related to other lymphotropic herpesviruses such as herpesvirus saimiri and Epstein-Barr virus. The E1 ORF of EHV-2, a G protein-coupled receptor homolog, shows 31 to 47% amino acid identity with known CC chemokine receptors. To investigate whether E1 may encode a functional receptor, we cloned the E1 ORF and expressed it in stably transfected cell lines. We report here the identification of the CC chemokine eotaxin as a functional ligand for the EHV-2 E1 receptor. Chemokines are likely to play a role in the regulation of immune functions in equine hosts during EHV-2 infection and, via interaction with E1, may affect viral replication and/or escape from immune responses.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio di Patologia Vascolare, Istituto Dermopatico dell'Immacolata-Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Camarda
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Spinetti
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bernardini
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mair
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Davis-Poynter
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Capogrossi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Napolitano
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018142:Gammaherpesvirinae / Q000235:genetics*; D015870:Gene Expression; D005814:Genes, Viral; D006736:Horses; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014162:Transfection; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: C401823:E1 protein, Equid herpesvirus 2; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine; D014764:Viral Proteins