Coronaviruses are a family of enveloped RNA viruses that cause respiratory, enteric, and neurologic diseases in mammalian and avian hosts. In humans, three coronaviruses are responsible for upper respiratory tract infections; a fourth human coronavirus is the recently discovered causative agent of SARS. The genomes of coronaviruses are the largest among all the RNA viruses, which has made their genetic manipulation a formidable problem. Our laboratory developed the earliest reverse genetic system for coronaviruses, called targeted RNA recombination, with the prototype coronavirus mouse hepatitis virus (MHV). This method exploits the high rate of RNA recombination in MHV to transduce site-specific mutations into the viral genome by recombination with synthetic RNA introduced into infected cells. Coupled with a powerful host-range-based selection system, targeted RNA recombination has become a robust and versatile technique that has been used to answer fundamental questions about viral protein structure and function, host species specificity, virion assembly, and the complex mechanism of coronavirus RNA synthesis. The major object of this proposal is to further extend our genetic studies of coronavirus assembly mechanisms. Targeted RNA recombination and complementary biochemical analyses will be used to answer basic questions about the functional roles of MHV structural proteins in viral replication: how the small envelope protein cooperates with the membrane protein to drive formation and budding of the virus envelope; how the spike glycoprotein endodomain specifies its inclusion in virion assembly; and how the nucleocapsid protein binds to genomic RNA and is selected for incorporation into virions. An understanding of the molecular biology of coronaviruses is critical for their control and prophylaxis. The proposed studies will provide fundamental insights into the coronavirus life cycle, potential targets for antiviral chemotherapy, and a possible means to manipulate these infectious agents for vaccine design.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01AI064603-03
Application #
7240482
Study Section
Virology - A Study Section (VIRA)
Program Officer
Cassels, Frederick J
Project Start
2005-06-01
Project End
2010-05-31
Budget Start
2007-06-01
Budget End
2008-05-31
Support Year
3
Fiscal Year
2007
Total Cost
$420,581
Indirect Cost
Name
Wadsworth Center
Department
Type
DUNS #
153695478
City
Menands
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
12204
Kuo, Lili; Hurst-Hess, Kelley R; Koetzner, Cheri A et al. (2016) Analyses of Coronavirus Assembly Interactions with Interspecies Membrane and Nucleocapsid Protein Chimeras. J Virol 90:4357-4368
Kuo, Lili; Koetzner, Cheri A; Masters, Paul S (2016) A key role for the carboxy-terminal tail of the murine coronavirus nucleocapsid protein in coordination of genome packaging. Virology 494:100-7
Hurst-Hess, Kelley R; Kuo, Lili; Masters, Paul S (2015) Dissection of amino-terminal functional domains of murine coronavirus nonstructural protein 3. J Virol 89:6033-47
Kuo, Lili; Koetzner, Cheri A; Hurst, Kelley R et al. (2014) Recognition of the murine coronavirus genomic RNA packaging signal depends on the second RNA-binding domain of the nucleocapsid protein. J Virol 88:4451-65
Yao, Qianqian; Masters, Paul S; Ye, Rong (2013) Negatively charged residues in the endodomain are critical for specific assembly of spike protein into murine coronavirus. Virology 442:74-81
Hurst, Kelley R; Koetzner, Cheri A; Masters, Paul S (2013) Characterization of a critical interaction between the coronavirus nucleocapsid protein and nonstructural protein 3 of the viral replicase-transcriptase complex. J Virol 87:9159-72
Kuo, Lili; Masters, Paul S (2013) Functional analysis of the murine coronavirus genomic RNA packaging signal. J Virol 87:5182-92
Hurst, Kelley R; Ye, Rong; Goebel, Scott J et al. (2010) An interaction between the nucleocapsid protein and a component of the replicase-transcriptase complex is crucial for the infectivity of coronavirus genomic RNA. J Virol 84:10276-88
Koetzner, Cheri A; Kuo, Lili; Goebel, Scott J et al. (2010) Accessory protein 5a is a major antagonist of the antiviral action of interferon against murine coronavirus. J Virol 84:8262-74
Kuo, Lili; Masters, Paul S (2010) Evolved variants of the membrane protein can partially replace the envelope protein in murine coronavirus assembly. J Virol 84:12872-85

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