Previous Article | Next Article 
Journal of Virology, April 2003, p. 4597-4608, Vol. 77, No. 8
0022-538X/03/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.77.8.4597-4608.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
The Small Envelope Protein E Is Not Essential for Murine Coronavirus Replication
Lili Kuo1 and Paul S. Masters1,2*
Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health,1
Department of Biomedical Sciences, University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, New York 122012
Received 11 September 2002/
Accepted 16 January 2003
The importance of the small envelope (E) protein in the assembly of coronaviruses has been demonstrated in several studies. While its precise function is not clearly defined, E is a pivotal player in the morphogenesis of the virion envelope. Expression of the E protein alone results in its incorporation into vesicles that are released from cells, and the coexpression of the E protein with the membrane protein M leads to the assembly of coronavirus-like particles. We have previously generated E gene mutants of mouse hepatitis virus (MHV) that had marked defects in viral growth and produced virions that were aberrantly assembled in comparison to wild-type virions. We have now been able to obtain a viable MHV mutant in which the entire E gene, as well as the nonessential upstream genes 4 and 5a, has been deleted. This mutant (
E) was obtained by a targeted RNA recombination method that makes use of a powerful host range-based selection system. The
E mutant produces tiny plaques with an unusual morphology compared to plaques formed by wild-type MHV. Despite its low growth rate and low infectious titer, the
E mutant is genetically stable, showing no detectable phenotypic changes after several passages. The properties of this mutant provide further support for the importance of E protein in MHV replication, but surprisingly, they also show that E protein is not essential.
* Corresponding author. Mailing address: David Axelrod Institute, Wadsworth Center, NYSDOH, New Scotland Ave., P.O. Box 22002, Albany, NY 12201-2002. Phone: (518) 474-1283. Fax: (518) 473-1326. E-mail:
masters{at}wadsworth.org.
Journal of Virology, April 2003, p. 4597-4608, Vol. 77, No. 8
0022-538X/03/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.77.8.4597-4608.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
This article has been cited by other articles:
-
Frieman, M., Baric, R.
(2008). Mechanisms of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Pathogenesis and Innate Immunomodulation. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev.
72: 672-685
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Siu, Y. L., Teoh, K. T., Lo, J., Chan, C. M., Kien, F., Escriou, N., Tsao, S. W., Nicholls, J. M., Altmeyer, R., Peiris, J. S. M., Bruzzone, R., Nal, B.
(2008). The M, E, and N Structural Proteins of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Are Required for Efficient Assembly, Trafficking, and Release of Virus-Like Particles. J. Virol.
82: 11318-11330
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Boscarino, J. A., Logan, H. L., Lacny, J. J., Gallagher, T. M.
(2008). Envelope Protein Palmitoylations Are Crucial for Murine Coronavirus Assembly. J. Virol.
82: 2989-2999
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Lopez, L. A., Riffle, A. J., Pike, S. L., Gardner, D., Hogue, B. G.
(2008). Importance of Conserved Cysteine Residues in the Coronavirus Envelope Protein. J. Virol.
82: 3000-3010
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Zust, R., Miller, T. B., Goebel, S. J., Thiel, V., Masters, P. S.
(2008). Genetic Interactions between an Essential 3' cis-Acting RNA Pseudoknot, Replicase Gene Products, and the Extreme 3' End of the Mouse Coronavirus Genome. J. Virol.
82: 1214-1228
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Ye, Y., Hogue, B. G.
(2007). Role of the Coronavirus E Viroporin Protein Transmembrane Domain in Virus Assembly. J. Virol.
81: 3597-3607
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
McBride, C. E., Li, J., Machamer, C. E.
(2007). The Cytoplasmic Tail of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Spike Protein Contains a Novel Endoplasmic Reticulum Retrieval Signal That Binds COPI and Promotes Interaction with Membrane Protein. J. Virol.
81: 2418-2428
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Kuo, L., Hurst, K. R., Masters, P. S.
(2007). Exceptional Flexibility in the Sequence Requirements for Coronavirus Small Envelope Protein Function. J. Virol.
81: 2249-2262
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
DeDiego, M. L., Alvarez, E., Almazan, F., Rejas, M. T., Lamirande, E., Roberts, A., Shieh, W.-J., Zaki, S. R., Subbarao, K., Enjuanes, L.
(2007). A Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus That Lacks the E Gene Is Attenuated In Vitro and In Vivo. J. Virol.
81: 1701-1713
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Goebel, S. J., Miller, T. B., Bennett, C. J., Bernard, K. A., Masters, P. S.
(2007). A Hypervariable Region within the 3' cis-Acting Element of the Murine Coronavirus Genome Is Nonessential for RNA Synthesis but Affects Pathogenesis. J. Virol.
81: 1274-1287
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Yount, B., Roberts, R. S., Lindesmith, L., Baric, R. S.
(2006). Rewiring the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) transcription circuit: Engineering a recombination-resistant genome. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA
103: 12546-12551
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Neuman, B. W., Adair, B. D., Yoshioka, C., Quispe, J. D., Orca, G., Kuhn, P., Milligan, R. A., Yeager, M., Buchmeier, M. J.
(2006). Supramolecular architecture of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus revealed by electron cryomicroscopy.. J. Virol.
80: 7918-7928
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Verma, S., Bednar, V., Blount, A., Hogue, B. G.
(2006). Identification of Functionally Important Negatively Charged Residues in the Carboxy End of Mouse Hepatitis Coronavirus A59 Nucleocapsid Protein. J. Virol.
80: 4344-4355
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Hodgson, T., Britton, P., Cavanagh, D.
(2006). Neither the RNA nor the Proteins of Open Reading Frames 3a and 3b of the Coronavirus Infectious Bronchitis Virus Are Essential for Replication. J. Virol.
80: 296-305
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Lissenberg, A., Vrolijk, M. M., van Vliet, A. L. W., Langereis, M. A., de Groot-Mijnes, J. D. F., Rottier, P. J. M., de Groot, R. J.
(2005). Luxury at a Cost? Recombinant Mouse Hepatitis Viruses Expressing the Accessory Hemagglutinin Esterase Protein Display Reduced Fitness In Vitro. J. Virol.
79: 15054-15063
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Weiss, S. R., Navas-Martin, S.
(2005). Coronavirus Pathogenesis and the Emerging Pathogen Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev.
69: 635-664
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Yount, B., Roberts, R. S., Sims, A. C., Deming, D., Frieman, M. B., Sparks, J., Denison, M. R., Davis, N., Baric, R. S.
(2005). Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Group-Specific Open Reading Frames Encode Nonessential Functions for Replication in Cell Cultures and Mice. J. Virol.
79: 14909-14922
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Youn, S., Collisson, E. W., Machamer, C. E.
(2005). Contribution of Trafficking Signals in the Cytoplasmic Tail of the Infectious Bronchitis Virus Spike Protein to Virus Infection. J. Virol.
79: 13209-13217
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Hurst, K. R., Kuo, L., Koetzner, C. A., Ye, R., Hsue, B., Masters, P. S.
(2005). A Major Determinant for Membrane Protein Interaction Localizes to the Carboxy-Terminal Domain of the Mouse Coronavirus Nucleocapsid Protein. J. Virol.
79: 13285-13297
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Ye, R., Montalto-Morrison, C., Masters, P. S.
(2004). Genetic Analysis of Determinants for Spike Glycoprotein Assembly into Murine Coronavirus Virions: Distinct Roles for Charge-Rich and Cysteine-Rich Regions of the Endodomain. J. Virol.
78: 9904-9917
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Goebel, S. J., Taylor, J., Masters, P. S.
(2004). The 3' cis-Acting Genomic Replication Element of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Can Function in the Murine Coronavirus Genome. J. Virol.
78: 7846-7851
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Hofmann, H., Hattermann, K., Marzi, A., Gramberg, T., Geier, M., Krumbiegel, M., Kuate, S., Uberla, K., Niedrig, M., Pohlmann, S.
(2004). S Protein of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Associated Coronavirus Mediates Entry into Hepatoma Cell Lines and Is Targeted by Neutralizing Antibodies in Infected Patients. J. Virol.
78: 6134-6142
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Lontok, E., Corse, E., Machamer, C. E.
(2004). Intracellular Targeting Signals Contribute to Localization of Coronavirus Spike Proteins near the Virus Assembly Site. J. Virol.
78: 5913-5922
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
-
Goebel, S. J., Hsue, B., Dombrowski, T. F., Masters, P. S.
(2004). Characterization of the RNA Components of a Putative Molecular Switch in the 3' Untranslated Region of the Murine Coronavirus Genome. J. Virol.
78: 669-682
[Abstract]
[Full Text]