Activation of the Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus major latency locus by the lytic switch protein RTA (ORF50).

ABSTRACT: Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) maintains a latent infection in primary effusion lymphoma cells but can be induced to enter full lytic replication by exposure to a variety of chemical inducing agents or by expression of the KSHV-encoded replication and transcription activator (RTA) protein. During latency, only a few viral genes are expressed, and these include the three genes of the so-called latency transcript (LT) cluster: v-FLIP (open reading frame 71 [ORF71]), v-cyclin (ORF72), and latency-associated nuclear antigen (ORF73). During latency, all three open reading frames are transcribed from a common promoter as part of a multicistronic mRNA. Subsequent alternative mRNA splicing and internal ribosome entry allows for the expression of each protein. Here, we show that tra

SUBMITTER: Matsumura S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1143749 | biostudies-literature | 2005 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature