title: Downregulation of Nipah virus N mRNA occurs through interaction between its 3' untranslated region and hnRNP D.
abstract: Nipah virus (NiV) is a nonsegmented, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA virus belonging to the genus Henipavirus, family Paramyxoviridae. NiV causes acute encephalitis and respiratory disease in humans, is associated with high mortality, and poses a threat in southern Asia. The genomes of henipaviruses are about 18,246 nucleotides (nt) long, which is longer than those of other paramyxoviruses (around 15,384 nt). This difference is caused by the noncoding RNA region, particularly the 3' untranslated region (UTR), which occupies more than half of the noncoding RNA region. To determine the function(s) of the NiV noncoding RNA region, we investigated the effects of NiV 3' UTRs on reporter gene expression. The NiV N 3' UTR (nt 1 to 100) demonstrated strong repressor activity associated with hnRNP D protein binding to that region. Mutation of the hnRNP D binding site or knockdown of hnRNP D resulted in increased expression of the NiV N 3' UTR reporter. Our findings suggest that NiV N expression is repressed by hnRNP D through the NiV N 3' UTR and demonstrate the involvement of posttranscriptional regulation in the NiV life cycle. To the best of our knowledge, this provides the first report of the functions of the NiV noncoding RNA region.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory Animal Research Center and International Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Kimihiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hino
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Akihiro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sugai
authors.forename: Masahiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.forename: Misako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoneda
authors.forename: Chieko
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kai
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D001665:Binding Sites / Q000235:genetics; D015536:Down-Regulation; D017353:Gene Deletion; D015967:Gene Expression Regulation, Viral; D017930:Genes, Reporter; D006367:HeLa Cells; D034502:Heterogeneous-Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D009154:Mutation; D045405:Nipah Virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D034502:Heterogeneous-Nuclear Ribonucleoprotein D; D012333:RNA, Messenger