Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small RNAs, 19–23 nucleotides in length, which regulate a variety of cellular processes. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) encodes only one intronic miRNA: human cytomegalovirus microRNA UL36 (hcmv-miR-UL36). In this study, we found that over-expression of hcmv-miR-UL36 resulted in a more than threefold increase in HCMV DNA synthesis at 24 h post infection. Fifteen putative targets of hcmv-miR-UL36 were identified using hybrid PCR, one being the HCMV UL138 gene that has previously been identified as a novel latency-associated determinant of HCMV infection. Down-regulation of UL138 expression by hcmv-miR-UL36 was validated using luciferase reporter assays and Western blot analysis in HEK293 cells. In the presence of hcmv-miR-UL36, we observed a 74.6% decrease in luciferase activity and a 46.2% decrease in HCMV UL138 protein expression. Our results indicate that hcmv-miR-UL36 may be a viral miRNA contributing to HCMV replication.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81171580 and 81201274), the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (20112104110012) and the Outstanding Scientific Fund of Shengjing Hospital.
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Corresponding editor: Shahid Jameel
MS received 22 March 2013; accepted 28 June 2013
Corresponding editor: Shahid Jameel
[Huang Y, Qi Y, Ma Y, He R, Ji Y, Sun Z and Ruan Q 2013 Down-regulation of human cytomegalovirus UL138, a novel latency-associated determinant, by hcmv-miR-UL36. J. Biosci. 38 1–7] DOI 10.1007/s12038-013-9353-4
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Huang, Y., Qi, Y., Ma, Y. et al. Down-regulation of human cytomegalovirus UL138, a novel latency-associated determinant, by hcmv-miR-UL36. J Biosci 38, 479–485 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12038-013-9353-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12038-013-9353-4