bims-nucpor 2021-12-05 papers

Issue of 2021‒12‒05
two papers selected by
Sara Mingu
Johannes Gutenberg University

Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2021 Nov 20. pii: S0006-291X(21)01558-8. [Epub ahead of print]586 137-142

NSP9 of SARS-CoV-2 attenuates nuclear transport by hampering nucleoporin 62 dynamics and functions in host cells.

Kei Makiyama, Masaharu Hazawa, Akiko Kobayashi, Keesiang Lim, Dominic C Voon, Richard W Wong.

Nuclear pore complexes (NPC) regulate molecular traffics on nuclear envelope, which plays crucial roles during cell fate specification and diseases. The viral accessory protein NSP9 of SARS-CoV-2 is reported to interact with nucleoporin 62 (NUP62), a structural component of the NPC, but its biological impact on the host cell remain obscure. Here, we established new cell line models with ectopic NSP9 expression and determined the subcellular destination and biological functions of NSP9. Confocal imaging identified NSP9 to be largely localized in close proximity to the endoplasmic reticulum. In agreement with the subcellular distribution of NSP9, association of NSP9 with NUP62 was observed in cytoplasm. Furthermore, the overexpression of NSP9 correlated with a reduction of NUP62 expression on the nuclear envelope, suggesting that attenuating NUP62 expression might have contributed to defective NPC formation. Importantly, the loss of NUP62 impaired translocation of p65, a subunit of NF-κB, upon TNF-α stimulation. Concordantly, NSP9 over-expression blocked p65 nuclear transport. Taken together, these data shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying the modulation of host cells during SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Keywords: NSP9; NUP62; Nucleoporin; SARS-CoV-2; p65

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbrc.2021.11.046

G3 (Bethesda). 2021 Oct 19. pii: jkab264. [Epub ahead of print]11(11):

An RNAi screen for genes that affect nuclear morphology in Caenorhabditis elegans reveals the involvement of unexpected processes.

Richa Maheshwari, Mohammad M Rahman, Daphna Joseph-Strauss, Orna Cohen-Fix.

Aberration in nuclear morphology is one of the hallmarks of cellular transformation. However, the processes that, when mis-regulated, result aberrant nuclear morphology are poorly understood. In this study, we carried out a systematic, high-throughput RNAi screen for genes that affect nuclear morphology in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos. The screen employed over 1700 RNAi constructs against genes required for embryonic viability. Nuclei of early embryos are typically spherical, and their NPCs are evenly distributed. The screen was performed on early embryos expressing a fluorescently tagged component of the nuclear pore complex (NPC), allowing visualization of nuclear shape as well as the distribution of NPCs around the nuclear envelope. Our screen uncovered 182 genes whose downregulation resulted in one or more abnormal nuclear phenotypes, including multiple nuclei, micronuclei, abnormal nuclear shape, anaphase bridges, and abnormal NPC distribution. Many of these genes fall into common functional groups, including some that were not previously known to affect nuclear morphology, such as genes involved in mitochondrial function, the vacuolar ATPase, and the CCT chaperonin complex. The results of this screen add to our growing knowledge of processes that affect nuclear morphology and that may be altered in cancer cells that exhibit abnormal nuclear shape.

Keywords: C. elegans ; CCT chaperonin; ER morphology; anaphase bridges; cytokinesis; micronuclei; nuclear envelope; paired nuclei; vacuolar ATPase

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/g3journal/jkab264