病毒RNA如何逃避宿主细胞的降解

How Viral RNAs Avoid Degradation in Host Cells

细胞RNA的降解机制不仅在基因表达调节方面具有重要作用,而且也是一种重要的病毒防御机制.作为一种必须在细胞内增殖的微生物,病毒已经进化出了多种机制,以保护它们的RNA免被宿主细胞降解,如病毒RNA模拟宿主细胞mRNA的结构、形成磷脂包膜、形成局部二级结构、结合自己或宿主细胞编码的蛋白质和编码核酸酶增强宿主细胞mRNA降解等.本文主要论述了病毒RNA逃避宿主细胞降解的方式,并对其应用前景进行了展望,尤其是在研发抗病毒药物方面的应用前景.

The cellular RNA decay machinery not only regulates the gene expression in host cells, but also acts as an antiviral defense mechanism. The viruses must enter the cells to complete a reproductive infection cycle, during which several mechanisms to protect their RNAs from host degradation have been evolved. The viral RNAs can mimic cellular mRNA structure, be wrapped with phospholipid membranes, form local secondary structures, bind to host or viral proteins, or encode nuclease to interfere the host cellular mRNA decay. In this review, the mechanisms of viral RNA adopted to escape from cellular mRNA decay are discussed, and the possible applications of such mechanisms to be used for antiviral drug development are prospected.