Abstract
RNA viruses are particularly vulnerable to RNAi-based defenses in the host, and thus have evolved specific proteins, known as viral suppressors of RNA silencing (VSRs), as a counterdefense. In this issue of Genes & Development, Azevedo and colleagues (pp. 904-915) discovered that P38, the VSR of Turnip crinkle virus, uses its glycine/tryptophane (GW) motifs as an ARGONAUTE (AGO) hook to attract and disarm the host's essential effector of RNA silencing. Several GW motif-containing cellular proteins are known to be important partners of AGOs in RNA silencing effector complexes in yeast, plants, and animals. The GW motif appears to be a versatile and effective tool for regulating the activities of RNA silencing pathways, and the use of GW mimicry to compete for and inhibit host AGOs may be a strategy used by many pathogens to counteract host RNAi-based defenses. © 2010 by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 853-856 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Genes & Development |
| Volume | 24 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 3 2010 |
Bibliographical note
KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01Acknowledgements: The work in H.J.'s laboratory is supported by National Institutes of Health grant GM093008 and National Science Foundation Career grant MCB-0642843. The work in J.K.Z.'s laboratory is supported by grants from National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, and U.S. Department of Agriculture.
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine