Enteroviruses are among the most common human infectious pathogens responsible for a broad spectrum of diseases ranging from the common cold through acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis to poliomyelitis. In a new article published in PLoS Pathogens, Vladimíra Horová and colleagues from Evžen Bouřa Group at IOCB Prague, in collaboration with researchers from the Utrecht University and the Institute of Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences describe the way these viruses hijack the ACBD3 host protein in order to replicate.
The mode, in which the viral 3A proteins bind to the host’s Golgi-located ACBD3, was analyzed via the protein crystallography and point mutation testing. The researchers found the enteroviruses attack the same sites of ACBD3 as kobuviruses, a distinct, albeit related viral group. This was found to be a case of convergent evolution because the 3A protein from kobuviruses accesses these sites in a different orientation and bears significant structural differences. The scientists also measured the significance of single interactions between the enteroviral 3A, the host ACBD3, and the lipid bilayer.
The knowledge of replication pathways of this common class of human pathogens opens the possibility of targeting it in future drug development.
Original paper (open access)
- Horova V, Lyoo H, Różycki B, Chalupska D, Smola M, Humpolickova J, Strating J R P M, van Kuppeveld F J M, Boura E, Klima M (2019) (2019) Convergent evolution in the mechanisms of ACBD3 recruitment to picornavirus replication sites. PLoS Pathog 15(8): e1007962. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1007962
