We have studied the mechanisms by which HIV-1 Tat and HTLV-I Tax proteins activate transcription. Recent finding relevant to the HIV-1 system include the following: 1) We have obtained evidence that Tat functions as a transcriptional adaptor that indirectly activates the HIV-1 LTR only in the setting of upstream """"""""enhancers."""""""" 2) We have implicated a novel non-transcriptional function in Tat that influences HIV-1 infectivity. 3) We have determined that differences in the basic RNA-binding domains of HIV-1 Tat and HIV-2 Tat confer type specific transactivation of the respective LTRs. 4) We have defined the RNA-binding domain of a TAR-RNA- binding protein TRBP, which categorizes this protein into the family of RNA-binding proteins that includes human dsI kinase and Drosophila Staufen. For the HTLV-I system, recent accomplishments include: 1) the demonstration that HTLV-I Tax protein induces the formation of micro- nuclei in mammalian cells. 2) The characterization of an activation domain and a targetting domain in Tax. A third area of interest for the laboratory is the study of ribozymes. We have constructed five different ribozymes each targetted to an independent locus in the HIV-1 genome. We have also made transgenic mice that contain ribozyme-genes which direct synthesis of ribozymes capable of cleaving HIV-1 RNAs. Ongoing studies in the laboratory have also delineated that ribozymes can be used as thermal stable enzymes.
Yeung, Man Lung; Bennasser, Yamina; Watashi, Koichi et al. (2009) Pyrosequencing of small non-coding RNAs in HIV-1 infected cells: evidence for the processing of a viral-cellular double-stranded RNA hybrid. Nucleic Acids Res 37:6575-86 |
Yeung, Man Lung; Houzet, Laurent; Yedavalli, Venkat S R K et al. (2009) A genome-wide short hairpin RNA screening of jurkat T-cells for human proteins contributing to productive HIV-1 replication. J Biol Chem 284:19463-73 |
Grassmann, Ralph; Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2008) The roles of microRNAs in mammalian virus infection. Biochim Biophys Acta : |
Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2007) World AIDS Day 2007: AIDS at 26, are we there yet? Retrovirology 4:86 |
Lee, Jia Hai; Yedavalli, Venkat Rk; Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2007) Activation of HIV-1 expression and replication by cGMP dependent protein kinase type 1-beta (PKG1beta). Retrovirology 4:91 |
Berkhout, Ben; Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2007) RISCy business: MicroRNAs, pathogenesis, and viruses. J Biol Chem 282:26641-5 |
Yeung, Man Lung; Bennasser, Yamina; Le, Shu-Yun et al. (2007) RNA interference and HIV-1. Adv Pharmacol 55:427-38 |
Yeung, Man Lung; Benkirane, Monsef; Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2007) Small non-coding RNAs, mammalian cells, and viruses: regulatory interactions? Retrovirology 4:74 |
Yedavalli, Venkat R K; Jeang, Kuan-Teh (2007) Methylation: a regulator of HIV-1 replication? Retrovirology 4:9 |
Triboulet, Robinson; Mari, Bernard; Lin, Yea-Lih et al. (2007) Suppression of microRNA-silencing pathway by HIV-1 during virus replication. Science 315:1579-82 |
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