Disease relevance of Herpesviridae

• This function is mediated by KSHV ORF37, a homolog of a DNA exonuclease widely present in other herpesviruses but which in KSHV has uniquely evolved additional functions that mediate its participation in RNA degradation [1].
• A deubiquitinating enzyme encoded by HSV-1 belongs to a family of cysteine proteases that is conserved across the family Herpesviridae [2].
• Analysis of the lesions in several drug-resistant DNA polymerase mutants of herpes simplex virus along with comparative analysis of the published polymerase sequences of other human herpesviruses has shown that most lesions (five out of six) are substitutions at amino acid residues conserved in all four polymerases [3].
• G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) encoded by herpesviruses and poxviruses are homologous to mammalian chemokine receptors [4].
• This direct role for MEQ-CtBP interaction in MDV oncogenicity highlights the convergent evolution of molecular mechanisms of neoplastic transformation by herpesviruses because Epstein-Barr virus oncoproteins EBNA 3A and 3C also interact with CtBP [5].

Psychiatry related information on Herpesviridae

• To find if HSV1 or certain other herpesviruses are involved in vascular dementia (VaD), we searched post mortem brain specimens from patients suffering from VaD for the presence of HSV1, cytomegalovirus (CMV), and human herpesvirus type 6 DNA, using polymerase chain reaction [6].

High impact information on Herpesviridae

• Herpesviruses encode a serine protease that specifically cleaves assembly protein [7].
• In this study a gene for DHFR was found in a specific subgroup of the gamma or lymphotropic class of herpesviruses [8].
• Sequence alignment of the large tegument proteins across the family Herpesviridae indicates conservation of key catalytic residues amongst these viruses [2].
• These results suggest a previously unknown involvement of ARF GTPases in the control of cellular functions by herpesviruses [9].
• Herpesviruses encode a variety of proteins with the potential to disrupt chemokine signaling, and hence immune organization [10].

Chemical compound and disease context of Herpesviridae

• Herpesviruses and heparan sulfate: an intimate relationship in aid of viral entry [11].
• Here we show, for the first time to our knowledge, that latent infection with KSHV in B lymphocytes can be terminated by glycyrrhizic acid (GA), a triterpenoid compound earlier shown to inhibit the lytic replication of other herpesviruses [12].
• These results suggest that acyclovir-resistant viruses could establish latent infections in clinical settings and have implications for the use of genetically engineered herpesviruses to deliver foreign genes to neurons [13].
• Strikingly, the glycoprotein B disintegrin-like domain is conserved in many human and animal herpesviruses, suggesting that integrins may support entry across this medically important virus family [14].
• The relative inability of the EBV-induced DNA polymerase to distinguish between the two purine nucleotides reported here is consistent with previous reports on the ready incorporation of other nucleotide analogs into DNA polymerases induced by other herpesviruses [15].

Biological context of Herpesviridae

• Certain classes of AIDS NHL are associated with alterations in oncogenes or tumor-suppressor genes or infections by oncogenic herpesviruses [16].
• Neonatal infection with mouse thymic virus: effects on cells regulating the antibody response to type III pneumococcal polysaccharide [17].
• Exploitation of differences in the substrate specificity of the type I and type II thymidine kinases (EC 2.7.1.21, TK) expressed by the Herpesviridae and Poxviridae (and human cells), respectively, has lead to the development of effective antiherpetic drugs such as acyclovir and gancyclovir [18].
• In the course of systematic analysis of protein sequences containing the purine NTP-binding motif, a new superfamily was delineated which included 25 established or putative helicases of Escherichia coli, yeast, insects, mammals, pox- and herpesviruses, a yeast mitochondrial plasmid and three groups of positive strand RNA viruses [19].
• Genes homologous to the herpes simplex virus UL49.5 open reading frame are conserved throughout the Herpesviridae [20].

Anatomical context of Herpesviridae

• In the case of herpesviruses, alterations in endosomal trafficking might trigger redistribution of CD1/lipid complexes to cell surfaces, thereby promoting recognition by CD1d-restricted T cells [21].
• Previous studies have shown that alpha genes resident in eukaryotic cells are induced by infection with herpes simplex virus 1 or 2 but not by other herpesviruses and indicate that the alpha trans-inducing factor was a structural component of the virion [22].
• Detection of herpesviruses by polymerase chain reaction in lymphocytes from patients with rheumatoid arthritis [23].
• Glycoprotein H/glycoprotein L (gH/gL) complexes of herpesviruses are required for fusion of infecting virions with host cell membranes [24].
• Hematogenously spread herpesviruses are detected as frequently as neuronally spread herpesviruses in cerebrospinal fluid by polymerase chain reaction assay [25].

Gene context of Herpesviridae

• The demonstration that distinct herpesviruses target the HVEM-BTLA cosignaling pathway suggests the importance of this pathway in regulating T cell activation during host defenses [26].
• Importantly, Cdk2 activity is also essential for replication in other human herpesviruses [27].
• A sequence located between residues 610 and 636 on the UL52 protein was found to be conserved among the UL52 homologues of eight herpesviruses [28].
• Evolutionary trace analysis of UL25 and its homologues in other herpesviruses was used to locate potentially important amino acids on the surface of the protein, leading to the identification of four putative docking regions for protein partners [29].
• Our objective is to explore interactions between Luman and HCF and to determine if they play a role in the biology of herpesviruses [30].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of Herpesviridae

• PCR using oligonucleotide primers designed for a conserved protein of alcelaphine herpesviruses 1 (AlHV-1) and 2 (AlHV-2) and for conserved regions of a herpesvirus DNA polymerase gene was positive for tissues from all eight clinically affected animals and negative for eight out of eight red deer without clinical signs of MCF [31].
• The effect of phosphonoacetic acid on the ultrastructure of cell cultures infected with simian oncogenic herpesviruses [32].
• The combination of polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry revealed that these herpesviruses proliferated in many cases of DIP [33].
• Our results show that the polymerase chain reaction provides a highly sensitive and specific technique for the identification of herpesviruses DNA in cerebrospinal fluid that should be of value for early and rapid diagnosis, therapeutic decisions, prognostic evaluation, and epidemiological studies [34].
• The prevalence of the eight human herpesviruses was determined by polymerase chain reaction in 91 samples of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid from 72 HIV-infected patients with 91 episodes of suspected pneumonia [35].

References