An N-terminal amphipathic helix in dengue virus nonstructural protein 4A mediates oligomerization and is essential for replication

J Virol. 2013 Apr;87(7):4080-5. doi: 10.1128/JVI.01900-12. Epub 2013 Jan 16.

Abstract

Dengue virus (DENV) causes dengue fever, a major health concern worldwide. We identified an amphipathic helix (AH) in the N-terminal region of the viral nonstructural protein 4A (NS4A). Disruption of its amphipathic nature using mutagenesis reduced homo-oligomerization and abolished viral replication. These data emphasize the significance of NS4A in the life cycle of the dengue virus and demarcate it as a target for the design of novel antiviral therapy.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Blotting, Western
  • Dengue Virus / genetics*
  • Gene Components
  • Microscopy, Confocal
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Mutagenesis
  • Polymerization
  • Sequence Alignment
  • Viral Nonstructural Proteins / chemistry*
  • Viral Nonstructural Proteins / metabolism
  • Virus Replication / genetics*

Substances

  • Viral Nonstructural Proteins