Viral non-coding RNAs hijack host Pumilio proteins to regulate host transcripts.

ABSTRACT: Viral non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) often perform multiple functions during persistent infection, but how they interface with host RNA-binding proteins remains incompletely understood. Herpesvirus saimiri (HVS), a T-tropic γ-herpesvirus that induces aggressive lymphomas in primates, during its latency expresses abundant small nuclear RNAs HSUR1 and HSUR2. HSUR1 is known to trigger target-directed microRNA decay (TDMD) of host miR-27a, and HSUR2 can function as a miRNA-dependent adaptor; here we show that both HSURs also bind host Pumilio proteins (PUM1 and PUM2) via perfectly conserved Pumilio response elements (PREs). PUM proteins are potent post-transcriptional regulators that bind PREs usually located in 3' UTRs of mRNAs to repress protein production. In Jurkat T cells, wild-type HSUR1/2, bu

SUBMITTER: Phan N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12687793 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature