Borna disease virus P protein affects neural transmission through interactions with gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-associated protein.
Borna disease virus (BDV) is one of the infectious agents that causes diseases of the central nervous system in a wide range of vertebrate species and, perhaps, in humans. The phosphoprotein (P) of BDV, an essential cofactor of virus RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, is required for virus replication. In this study, we identified the gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-associated protein (GABARAP) with functions in neurobiology as one of the viral P protein-interacting cellular factors by using an approach of phage display-based protein-protein interaction analysis. Direct binding between GABARAP and P protein was confirmed by coimmunoprecipitation, protein pull-down, and mammalian two-hybrid analyses. GABARAP originally was identified as a linker between the gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor (GABAR) and the microtubule to regulate receptor trafficking and plays important roles in the regulation of the inhibitory neural transmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA). We showed that GABARAP colocalizes with P protein in the cells infected with BDV or transfected with the P gene, which resulted in shifting the localization of GABARAP from the cytosol to the nucleus. We further demonstrated that P protein blocks the trafficking of GABAR, a principal GABA-gated ion channel that plays important roles in neural transmission, to the surface of cells infected with BDV or transfected with the P gene. We proposed that during BDV infection, P protein binds to GABARAP, shifts the distribution of GABARAP from the cytoplasm to the nucleus, and disrupts the trafficking of GABARs to the cell membranes, which may result in the inhibition of GABA-induced currents and in the enhancement of hyperactivity and anxiety.
Peng
Guiqing
G
State Key Laboratory of Virology, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, People's Republic of China.
Yan
Yan
Y
Zhu
Chengliang
C
Wang
Shiqun
S
Yan
Xiaohong
X
Lu
Lili
L
Li
Wei
W
Hu
Jing
J
Wei
Wei
W
Mu
Yongxin
Y
Chen
Yanni
Y
Feng
Yong
Y
Gong
Rui
R
Wu
Kailang
K
Zhang
Fengmin
F
Zhang
Xiaolian
X
Zhu
Ying
Y
Wu
Jianguo
J
D021581:Active Transport, Cell Nucleus; D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing / Q000378:metabolism*; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D001483:Base Sequence; D001891:Borna disease virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002460:Cell Line; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000378:metabolism; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000378:metabolism; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D003600:Cytosol / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism*; D010750:Phosphoproteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D011485:Protein Binding; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*
D048868:Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing; D000906:Antibodies; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins; C496537:P protein, Borna disease virus; D010750:Phosphoproteins; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins