An "Old" protein with a new story: Coronavirus endoribonuclease is important for evading host antiviral defenses.

ABSTRACT: Here we review the evolving story of the coronavirus endoribonuclease (EndoU). Coronavirus EndoU is encoded within the sequence of nonstructural protein (nsp) 15, which was initially identified as a component of the viral replication complex. Biochemical and structural studies revealed the enzymatic nature of nsp15/EndoU, which was postulated to be essential for the unique replication cycle of viruses in the order Nidovirales. However, the role of nsp15 in coronavirus replication was enigmatic as EndoU-deficient coronaviruses were viable and replicated to near wild-type virus levels in fibroblast cells. A breakthrough in our understanding of the role of EndoU was revealed in recent studies, which showed that EndoU mediates the evasion of viral double-stranded RNA recognition by host sensor

SUBMITTER: Deng X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5869138 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature