Innate immune signaling is modulated by the kaposin locus from Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus
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2024-08-06
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Abstract
Kaposi’s sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) is the causative agent of the endothelial cell (EC) cancer Kaposi’s Sarcoma (KS). Pathogenesis is dependent on effective infection, establishment and maintenance of viral latency, and periodic lytic virus reactivation. All phases of this replicative cycle rely on effective modulation of host cell immune signaling. The viral gene kaposin and its’ associated protein, KapB, are expressed in all phases of infection. However, the roles of the kaposin transcript and KapB in immune signaling remains uninvestigated. My research uncovered a novel role for KapB in blocking activation of innate immune signaling. Innate immune signaling can be controlled through a variety of regulatory molecules including proteins and RNA. I found that the kaposin RNA was responsible for blocking innate immune promoter activation. Additionally, I demonstrated that both the RNA and protein products contribute to other known KapB phenotypes of stabilization of an AU-rich element-mRNA reporter and processing body disassembly. Collectively, these data suggest that KapB utilizes both the kaposin RNA and KapB protein products to fine-tune inflammatory signaling, contributing to a permissive microenvironment for viral infection.
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Katsademas, T. A. (2024). Innate immune signaling is modulated by the kaposin locus from Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.