The Ebola Virus VP35 Protein Is a Suppressor of RNA Silencing

RNA silencing or interference (RNAi) is a gene regulation mechanism in eukaryotes that controls cell differentiation and developmental processes via expression of microRNAs. RNAi also serves as an innate antiviral defence response in plants, nematodes, and insects. This antiviral response is triggered by virus-specific double-stranded RNA molecules (dsRNAs) that are produced during infection. To overcome antiviral RNAi responses, many plant and insect viruses encode RNA silencing suppressors (RSSs) that enable them to replicate at higher titers. Recently, several human viruses were shown to encode RSSs, suggesting that RNAi also serves as an innate defence response in mammals. Here, we demonstrate that the Ebola virus VP35 protein is a suppressor of RNAi in mammalian cells and that its RSS activity is functionally equivalent to that of the HIV-1 Tat protein. We show that VP35 can replace HIV-1 Tat and thereby support the replication of a Tat-minus HIV-1 variant. The VP35 dsRNA-binding domain is required for this RSS activity. Vaccinia virus E3L protein and influenza A virus NS1 protein are also capable of replacing the HIV-1 Tat RSS function. These findings support the hypothesis that RNAi is part of the innate antiviral response in mammalian cells. Moreover, the results indicate that RSSs play a critical role in mammalian virus replication

The Histone Demethylase Jarid1b (Kdm5b) Is a Novel Component of the Rb Pathway and Associates with E2f-Target Genes in MEFs during Senescence

Senescence is a robust cell cycle arrest controlled by the p53 and Rb pathways that acts as an important barrier to tumorigenesis. Senescence is associated with profound alterations in gene expression, including stable suppression of E2f-target genes by heterochromatin formation. Some of these changes in chromatin composition are orchestrated by Rb. In complex with E2f, Rb recruits chromatin modifying enzymes to E2f target genes, leading to their transcriptional repression. To identify novel chromatin remodeling enzymes that specifically function in the Rb pathway, we used a functional genetic screening model for bypass of senescence in murine cells. We identified the H3K4-demethylase Jarid1b as novel component of the Rb pathway in this screening model. We find that depletion of Jarid1b phenocopies knockdown of Rb1 and that Jarid1b associates with E2f-target genes during cellular senescence. These results suggest a role for Jarid1b in Rb-mediated repression of cell cycle genes during senescence