HCMV-secreted glycoprotein gpUL4 inhibits TRAIL-mediated apoptosis and NK cell activation.

ABSTRACT: Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a paradigm of pathogen immune evasion and sustains lifelong persistent infection in the face of exceptionally powerful host immune responses through the concerted action of multiple immune-evasins. These reduce NK cell activation by inhibiting ligands for activating receptors, expressing ligands for inhibitory receptors, or inhibiting synapse formation. However, these functions only inhibit direct interactions with the infected cell. To determine whether the virus also expresses soluble factors that could modulate NK function at a distance, we systematically screened all 170 HCMV canonical protein-coding genes. This revealed that UL4 encodes a secreted and heavily glycosylated protein (gpUL4) that is expressed with late-phase kinetics and is capable of inhib

SUBMITTER: Vlachava VM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10710050 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature