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Journal of Virology, March 2004, p. 2637-2641, Vol. 78, No. 5
0022-538X/04/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/JVI.78.5.2637-2641.2003
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Departments of Gene Expression and Protein Biochemistry,1 Molecular Pharmacology,2 Molecular Screening,5 Clinical Virology, GlaxoSmithKline Research and Development, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709,4 Departments of Microbiology,3 Pediatrics, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 277106
Received 27 September 2002/ Accepted 7 November 2003
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Papillomaviruses lack the enzymes generally targeted by most currently available antiviral agents (e.g., virus-encoded DNA polymerases, reverse transcriptases, and proteases). Papillomaviruses do encode E1, a helicase-ATPase, but it has so far proven a difficult enzyme to develop for classic drug screening. As such, successful development of anti-HPV therapies may require identification of novel antiviral targets, such as viral transcription factors and replication proteins (2, 21, 25) such as the HPV-encoded E2 protein.
The 50-kDa E2 protein is comprised of three functional domains (19). The amino-terminal domain of E2 is necessary for viral trans-activation and for direct association with E1. The smaller carboxyl-terminal domain (E2C) encodes the DNA binding and dimerization functions. Linking the amino- and carboxyl-terminal domains is a small, poorly conserved hinge region. E2 function requires binding to a 12-bp palindromic nucleotide sequence, ACCN6GGT, that is present at several locations throughout the HPV genome and is repeated several times near the viral origin of replication. Once associated with DNA, E2 interacts with a variety of host cell transcription factors to modulate viral transcription. The papillomavirus E2 protein is also required for origin (ORI)-specific viral DNA replication. Because association of E1 with E2 enhances the affinity of both proteins for the viral ORI, DNA sequence-specific binding by E2 effectively mediates sequence-specific DNA binding by E1 (6).
Since the E2-DNA interaction is central to the coordination of the essential papillomavirus transcription and replication processes, disruption of E2-DNA binding should inhibit HPV replication. To this end, we constructed a filamentous bacteriophage 10-mer random peptide library and screened for sequences that disrupted the E2-DNA association by binding to the E2 protein.
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A phage library, fGWX10, displaying 10-mer random peptide sequences was constructed as follows. DNA sequence encoding a Flag tag (AspTyrLysAspAspAspLys) and XhoI and KpnI restriction sites was inserted into the vector fTC (24). Dual BbsI sites were then engineered into the modified fTC vector by using XhoI- and KpnI-digested fTC, and the XhoI site was removed by site-directed mutagenesis, yielding the phage display vector fGW. fGW was digested with BbsI and ligated with a DNA cassette encoding a 30-amino-acid sequence containing a 10-residue stretch of random amino acids (NH2-EDGGSXXXXXXXXXXGGGGSGGGGSGGGGS, where X represents any of the 20 common amino acids). The DNA cassette encoding the 10-mer random peptide sequences was constructed by a synthetic ligase chain reaction procedure (10). Based on transformation efficiency and sequencing of primary transformants, the library was estimated to contain about 1010 different peptide sequences. A total of 2 x 1011 fGWX10 phage CFU in 100 µl of TBSDM buffer (25 mM Tris-HCl [pH 7.0], 150 mM NaCl, 5 mM dithiothreitol [DTT], 2 mM MgCl2) containing 0.5% milk was added to wells containing purified bio-E2C captured on NeutrAvidin-coated 96-well plates (Pierce, Rockford, Ill.). Phage screening was repeated for a total of six rounds essentially as described previously (23). For each round the ability of randomly picked single phage clones to bind to immobilized full-length E2 (FL-E2; purified according to the method described in reference 11) was assessed by phage enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (4). Sequencing of DNA from positive phage clones for each round revealed two classes of E2C-binding phage clones, encoding CF/LXC and ES/TWXXWWL/A E2-binding motifs (Table 1). Of the phage in the ES/TWXXWWL/A motif class, phage clone 6N30 showed the best specific binding to FL-E2 as determined by phage ELISA (data not shown). However, the strongest binding signal was obtained with the 6N40 phage clone, which contains the CF/LXC motif (data not shown).
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TABLE 1. Peptide sequence groups selected from the 10-mer phage library
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600 resonance units of immobilized DNA. Both the E2BS7592 and control flow cells were blocked with biotinylated bovine serum albumin. Samples containing fixed concentrations of E2 proteins (15 nM E2C, purified by a method similar to that described in reference 1, or 50 nM FL-E2, purified according to the method of reference 11) in HEPES-buffered saline (0.01 M HEPES [pH 7.4], 0.15 M NaCl, 3 mM EDTA, 0.005% polysorbate 20, 1 mM DTT) and increasing amounts of peptide (0.5 to 100 µM) were injected over the sensor chip. For each of three independent experiments, a calibration curve consisting of serially diluted E2 protein only (between 0.3 and 100 nM E2C or FL-E2) was performed to estimate the free E2 protein concentration in each of the E2-peptide mixtures. Competition curves in at least two independent experiments were analyzed using the solution affinity analysis in the BIAcore evaluation software. |
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TABLE 2. Peptide Kis and IC50s for HPV-11 E2-binding peptides for antagonism of E2-DNA interactionsa
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In an effort to increase the affinity of E2-DNA antagonist peptides for E2, a synthetic dimer of peptide 6N40A was synthesized. The dimeric 6N40A peptide showed a 9- to 45-fold-increased affinity compared to the monomeric 6N40A peptide for FL-E2 and E2C, respectively. This increase in apparent peptide affinity is most likely a consequence of the chelate effect (5, 20), wherein linking peptides increases the effective concentration of E2-binding sites.
A peptide derived from the E1-E2-binding domain has been shown to inhibit the E2-E1 interaction (15). We therefore synthesized and tested peptide E2P (Table 2), which is derived from the DNA recognition helix of E2 protein (18); however, E2P did not prevent DNA binding to FL-E2.
It was possible that peptide 6N40D could bind directly to E2BS DNA instead of to HPV E2 protein, thereby inhibiting the HPV E2-DNA interaction. However, SPR-based DNA-peptide binding experiments using 6N40D peptide and immobilized E2BS DNA showed no evidence of 6N40D binding to E2BS DNA (data not shown). Additionally, phage ELISA experiments using immobilized biotinylated E2BS DNA and 6N40 phage gave no evidence of phage-DNA association (data not shown).
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FIG. 1. Comparison of synthetic peptides by TRF. IC50 results are reported in Table 1. One microgram of anti-E2 monoclonal antibody 93.2a12 (anti-E2 antibody generated at GlaxoSmithKline) was added to each well in a 96-well plate and incubated at 4°C overnight. Wells were blocked with 1% milk in Tris-buffered saline and then washed with TBSDM buffer. Peptide samples were serially diluted in TBSDM containing 10 nM FL-E2 and incubated at room temperature for 30 min. Annealed oligonucleotides were end labeled for 30 min at room temperature in the presence of 16 nM (each) dATP, dTTP, and dGTP plus 16 nM Eu-dCTP and 0.017 U of Klenow enzyme/µl. Eu-DNA (100 pM) was then added to each FL-E2 sample and incubated at room temperature for an additional 30 min. The Eu-DNA-FL-E2 reaction mixtures were transferred into the monoclonal antibody-coated wells and incubated at room temperature for 1 h. Each well was then washed, and 100 µl of TRF enhancement solution (EG & G Wallac, Gaithersburg, Md.) was added and incubated for 10 min at room temperature. Bound Eu-DNA fluorescence was then determined on a Victor 1420 multiple label counter (EG & G Wallac). Data from three independent experiments were analyzed with the equation f = Vmax{1 - [x/(K + x)]}, where f is the signal from bound Eu-DNA, Vmax is the maximum signal, x is the peptide concentration, and K is the IC50 of synthetic peptides for inhibition of the FL-E2-Eu-DNA interaction.
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10-fold-increased trans-activation was seen based on SEAP reporter values (Fig. 2D).
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FIG. 2. Inhibition of E2-mediated reporter gene transcription by 6N40D peptide expressed in Vero cells. (A) Four tandem repeats of the E2-binding-site palindromes (nucleotides 28 to 66 within the HPV-11 origin of replication) were inserted upstream of the minimal simian virus 40 (SV40) promoter and sequence encoding a secreted form of human placental alkaline phosphatase to create the reporter plasmid pSEAP-2. (B) An HPV-11 E2 expression plasmid, pFastBac-E2, was generated by inserting the open reading frame sequence for full-length HPV-11 E2 into pFastBac-EF1 P. Expression from this vector is directed from the EF1 promoter. (C) A DNA cassette encoding the 6N40D E2 inhibitor peptide and a nuclear localization signal peptide (NLS) was inserted into the enhanced GFP fusion vector, pEGFP-N1 (Clontech), and then subcloned into the pFastBac-MAM-1 expression vector, yielding the baculovirus expression construct pFastBac-MAM/6N40D. pFastBac-MAM/6N40D derivative vectors were made which contained the NLS-GFP fusion with double Cys Ser mutated 6N40D peptide sequence (pFastBac-MAM/6N40DCys Ser) or the NLS-GFP fusion with a scrambled 6N40D peptide sequence (NH2-SCGDEHMGLECGWVGF-CONH2) (pFastBac-MAM/scrambled). CMV, cytomegalovirus. (D) To test the effects of 6N40D peptides on E2-mediated transcription control in vivo, Vero cells were transiently transfected with 0.125 µg of the reporter plasmid pSEAP-2 and/or 0.5 µg of the E2 transcription activator plasmid pFastBac-E2. The transfected cells were inoculated 24 h later with baculoviruses that expressed 6N40D, double Cys Ser mutated 6N40D, or scrambled 6N40D-NLS-GFP fusion proteins, according to the bottom panel. Medium supernatant (50 µl) was assayed for SEAP activity 48 h after the transductions. Fold induction represents SEAP activity in Vero cells with mock-transfected cells as reference. At least three independent experiments were performed in triplicate, and the average values are shown. The error bars indicate the standard deviations.
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Ser mutated peptide or a scrambled 6N40D peptide sequence showed no significant reduction in SEAP reporter activity. These data were confirmed in additional transient-expression assays using the E2 inhibitor peptide 6N40-NLS-GFP expressed from a mammalian expression plasmid rather than from a baculovirus (data not shown). The levels of fusion mRNA and fusion proteins for the different experiments were determined to be equivalent by using anti-GFP DNA probes and anti-GFP antibodies (data not shown), though global transcription levels were not measured. |
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FIG. 3. Inhibition of HPV-11 in vitro DNA replication by peptides 6N40A and 6N40A dimer. (A) pUC18/7870-99, an in vitro DNA replication template that contains 182 bp (nucleotides 7870 to 0099) from the HPV-11 locus control region inserted into pUC18. (B) NdeI-digested replication products from cell-free replication assays using HPV-11 ORI-containing plasmid (pUC18/7870-99) and increasing concentrations of 6N40A, 6N40A dimer, and E2P. E1, E2, and peptide were added as noted. Lanes corresponding to initial and baseline intensities of counts (I0 and Ibase, respectively) are indicated. (C) Replication assays with increasing peptide concentrations were quantified by both PhosphorImager and filter-binding techniques, and the resulting data for both were fitted to two-parameter hyperbolic decay curves. 6N40A dimer inhibited replication (circles) with an IC50 of 631 nM, while monomeric 6N40A inhibited replication (squares) less efficiently (IC50 = 27.3 µM). Peptide E2P (triangles) did not inhibit in vitro DNA replication at the concentrations tested.
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Our cell culture-based transcriptional activation experiments demonstrated that 6N40D-NLS-GFP inhibited E2-stimulated transcription, presumably due to the peptide component of the fusion polypeptide antagonizing the E2-ORI association. Theoretically, a higher-affinity antagonist peptide would more fully inhibit E2-DNA binding in cell culture; however, it is also possible that the NLS and GFP regions of the fusion peptide caused some steric hindrance of 6N40D-E2 association. Note that transcription inhibition studies with phosphorothioate oligonucleotide E2-DNA binding antagonists (7) indicated that an oligonucleotide of lower E2-binding affinity caused only a 50% decrease in trans-activation activity, while an oligonucleotide of higher affinity decreased trans-activation 10-fold. Thus, the incomplete suppression of E2-mediated trans-activation by the 6N40D-NLS-GFP fusion protein might simply be a reflection of suboptimal E2-DNA binding antagonism.
Taken together, our results indicate that the E2-DNA interaction can be antagonized successfully both in vitro and in cultured cells. We believe that this is the first example of the successful use of filamentous phage biopanning for the identification of protein-DNA binding antagonists that function specifically through direct binding to protein rather than to DNA. The ability of these peptides to inhibit the interaction between E2C and DNA suggests that the protein-peptide interaction site is within the carboxyl-terminal DNA binding domain of E2.
Finally, our results indicate that the E2-ORI interaction, which is required for the trans-activation and replication functions of E2, is a potential target for antiviral drug development. The placement of the E2 protein as a central regulator of viral transcription and replication allows antagonism of a single molecular interaction, E2 with its 12-bp palindromic binding site, to suppress two primary processes required for development and propagation of papillomavirus infection.
K.A.A. and K.A.H. were supported by National Institutes of Health grant R01 CA81214.
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