Tick-borne encephalitis virus inhibits rRNA synthesis and host protein production in human cells of neural origin

• Published in: PLoS neglected tropical diseases 2019-09, Vol.13 (9), p.e0007745-e0007745
• Main Authors: Selinger, Martin, Tykalová, Hana, Štěrba, Ján, Věchtová, Pavlína, Vavrušková, Zuzana, Lieskovská, Jaroslava, Kohl, Alain, Schnettler, Esther, Grubhoffer, Libor
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Arachnids; Biological response modifiers; Biology; Biology and life sciences; Cell Line, Tumor; Cells (Biology); Cerebellum; Dengue fever; DNA-directed RNA polymerase; Encephalitis; Encephalitis Viruses, Tick-Borne - physiology; Encephalitis, Tick-Borne - genetics; Encephalitis, Tick-Borne - metabolism; Encephalitis, Tick-Borne - virology; Flaviviruses; Funding; Genes; Genetic aspects; Genomes; Gliomas; Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase; Health aspects; Humans; Infection; Infections; Influenza; Interferon; Medicine and Health Sciences; Medulloblastoma; Mortality; Nucleic acids; Parasitology; Penicillin G; Protein biosynthesis; Protein Biosynthesis - genetics; Protein synthesis; Proteins; Research and Analysis Methods; RNA; RNA polymerase; RNA Polymerase I - genetics; RNA Polymerase I - metabolism; RNA Precursors; RNA, Ribosomal - genetics; RNA, Ribosomal - metabolism; rRNA 5S; Supervision; Target cells; Tick-borne diseases; Tick-borne encephalitis; Transcription, Genetic; Tropical diseases; Viral infections; Virology; Viruses; West Nile virus; Zika virus
• ISSN: 1935-2735; 1935-2727; 1935-2735
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0007745

Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), a member of the genus Flavivirus (Flaviviridae), is a causative agent of a severe neuroinfection. Recently, several flaviviruses have been shown to interact with host protein synthesis. In order to determine whether TBEV interacts with this host process in its natural target cells, we analysed de novo protein synthesis in a human cell line derived from cerebellar medulloblastoma (DAOY HTB-186). We observed a significant decrease in the rate of host protein synthesis, including the housekeeping genes HPRT1 and GAPDH and the known interferon-stimulated gene viperin. In addition, TBEV infection resulted in a specific decrease of RNA polymerase I (POLR1) transcripts, 18S and 28S rRNAs and their precursor, 45-47S pre-rRNA, but had no effect on the POLR3 transcribed 5S rRNA levels. To our knowledge, this is the first report of flavivirus-induced decrease of specifically POLR1 rRNA transcripts accompanied by host translational shut-off.