Divergence in poxvirus-encoded E3-like proteins can dictate poxvirus activation of cellular necroptosis - PubMed
4 hours ago
- #E3-like proteins
- #poxvirus
- #necroptosis
- Poxvirus-encoded E3-like proteins regulate cellular antiviral responses and contain two domains: N-terminal Zα-BD and C-terminal dsRNA-BD.
- Homology modeling identified dsRNA-BD-fold proteins in most poxviruses except avipoxviruses, salmon poxvirus, and entomopoxviruses, with acquisition events classifying them into three categories.
- The Zα-BD, involved in necroptosis inhibition, is absent in some poxviruses like leporipoxvirus, leading to RIPK1/RIPK3-mediated necroptosis activation in competent cells.
- Leporipoxviruses lack necroptosis countermeasures, possibly due to no selective pressure in lagomorph hosts, unlike orthopoxviruses that inhibit necroptosis with Zα-BD.
- E3-like protein evolution shows structural conservation in dsRNA-BD but diversity in Zα-BD, highlighting host selective pressure shaping viral divergence and immune evasion.