Adenoviruses are non-enveloped DNA viruses with an -36 kb genome. In humans, adenoviruses cause a significant number of gastrointestinal and respiratory infections. They also are a major cause of viral conjunctivitis, including epidemic keratoconjunctivitis (EKC), a condition that can threaten long-term visual function and for which there is no effective treatment. In addition, adenoviruses are being intensively investigated as vectors for human gene therapy because of their broad tissue tropism. Although significant insight has been obtained on how adenovirus penetrates the cell to reach the cytoplasm, little is known about the molecular mechanism of nuclear import of the adenovirus genome, which is critical for virus reproduction. This proposal is directed at obtaining detailed molecular insight on adenovirus DNA import.
The aims are: 1) The mechanism for docking of adenovirus to the nuclear pore complex will be investigated, focusing on an analysis of the adenovirus hexon protein and its interaction with specific nucleoporins. 2) The role of protein VII in the transport of adenovirus DNA through the nuclear pore complex will be analyzed, and the possibility that protein VII can be used as a nonviral method for achieving efficient gene transfer will be investigated. 3) The role of cytosolic factors, including hsc70 and its cofactors, in virus uncoating at the pore complex and in DNA import, will be analyzed. Considered together, this work will provide a valuable model for understanding the nuclear import of the genomes of pathogenic DNA viruses. The work also could potentiate the development of new therapies for EKC in humans. Finally, it could provide the basis for developing efficient means for nonviral gene transfer, which would be useful for gene therapy and functional studies of cells.
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| Wiethoff, Christopher M; Wodrich, Harald; Gerace, Larry et al. (2005) Adenovirus protein VI mediates membrane disruption following capsid disassembly. J Virol 79:1992-2000 |
