• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.39 no.4
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• pp.235-241
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• 2003

We have previously demonstrated that intracellular expression of an RNA aptamer termed RRE40, which was selected in vitro to bind HIV Rev 10-fold much tighter than wild-type RRE, efficiently protected human CD4+ T cell line, CEM, from HIV-1. In this study, to evaluate the efficacy of the RRE40 RNA in clinical settings, polyclonal CD4+ peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) were transduced with retroviral vectors expressing RRE40 decoy RNA and then challenged with clinical isolates of HIV-1. In contrast to the control cells transduced with vectors expressing control tRNA, intracellular expression of RRE40 RNA more effectively inhibited HIV-1 replication in CD4+ PBLs. However, transient and diminished inhibition, rather than complete inhibition, of HIV-1 replication in PBLs expressing RRE40 decoys have been observed. These results suggest that RRE40 decoy RNA would be useful to inhibit HIV-1 replication in cells. However, development of more efficient gene transfer protocols and/or more effective decoy RNAs would be needed to apply RNA decoy to modulate HIV-1 patient.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.109-117
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• 2006

The Rev binding to Rev Responsive Element (RRE) of HIV-1 mRNA plays an important role in the HIV-I viral replication cycle. The disruption of the Rev-RRE interaction has been studied extensively in order to develop a potential antiviral drug. In order to provide the basis for a more promising approach to develop a Rev-RRE binding inhibitor against HIV-I infection, it is necessary to understand the binding modes of the aminoglycoside antibiotics to RRE. In the present study, the binding mode of a modified antibiotic, a neamine conjugated with pyrene and arginine (NCPA), to RRE has been studied by the methods of $T_m$ measurement and spectroscopic analysis of RRE with or without antibiotics. The results confirmed that NCPA competes with Rev in binding to RRE.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.300-305
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• 2003

Intracellular expression of RNA decoys, such as TAR or RRE decoy, has been previously shown to protect immune cells from human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) replication by inhibiting the binding of the HIV-1 regulatory protein to the authentic HIV RNA sequence. However, HIV-1 challenge experiments of primary human T cells, which express the RNA decoy, demonstrated that the cells were only transiently protected, and hence, more improved protocols for HIV-1 inhibition with the RNA decoys need to be developed. In this report, in order to develop a more effective RNA decoy, we analyzed and compared the ability of a series of RNA decoy derivatives in inhibiting HIV-1 replication in CEM cells. Using an improved tRNA cassette to express high levels of RNA decoy transcripts in cells, we found that co-expression of both TAR and RRE decoys, in the form of an aligned sequence in a single transcription cassette, much more potently blocked cells from HIV-1 than the expression of only one kind of RNA decoy. This observation will have an important implication for experiments involving optimization of clinical applications in RNA decoy-based gene therapy against HIV-1.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.161-166
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• 1997

HIV-1 Rev protein plays an important role in regulating the expression of viral structural proteins. It allows the nuclear export and accumulation of unspliced and partially spliced viral mRNA in the cytoplasm. The Rev-responsive element RNA, present in the env gene, forms a higly ordered RNA secondary structure and is required for the Rev-mediated mRNA export. For this process to complete factor(s) are strongly suggested. From our experiments of electrophoretic mobility shift, UV-crosslinking and SDS/PAGE, RRE RNA was found to be recognized to several nuclear factors such as 36/37, 56, 41. 76, 150 kD proteins in the order of reactivity. Among them, 36/37 and 56 kD proteins are more reactive upon a brief UV treatment (5 min) and more persistent in the presence of high amount of nonspecific competitor, heparin. Certain nuclear protein9s) seemed to recognize the RRE RNA structure in competition with Rev to gel mobility shift assay.