Comparison the transcriptional changes of HEK293T cells transfected with synthesized vcDNA
Extrachromosomal circular DNA (eccDNA) is generated from chromosomal templates to play multiple biological roles in different types of cells. However, it is unknown whether viral infection could cause cells to generate viral non-genomic circular DNA (vcDNA). Here, we demonstrated for the first time that Varicella zoster virus (VZV)-infected cells and tissues generate an abundance of vcDNA. We developed a Cre/loxP-mediated in vitro vcDNA/eccDNA synthesizing method. We transfected the synthesized vcDNA into HEK293T cells, RNA-seq analysis indicated that VZV vcDNA 76509|75569 effectively mitigated the innate immune response that was stimulated by linear VZV 75569-76509 DNA. Overall design: HEK293T cells were transfected the synthesized vcDNA. RNA-seq was used to quantify the expression of genes