Gonzalez Maria Eugenia, Carrasco Luis
Unidad de Expresión Viral, Centro Nacional de Microbiología, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Carretera de Majadahonda-Pozuelo Km 2, 28220 Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain.
FEBS Lett. 2003 Sep 18;552(1):28-34. doi: 10.1016/s0014-5793(03)00780-4.
Viroporins are a group of proteins that participate in several viral functions, including the promotion of release of viral particles from cells. These proteins also affect cellular functions, including the cell vesicle system, glycoprotein trafficking and membrane permeability. Viroporins are not essential for the replication of viruses, but their presence enhances virus growth. Comprising some 60-120 amino acids, viroporins have a hydrophobic transmembrane domain that interacts with and expands the lipid bilayer. Some viroporins also contain other motifs, such as basic amino acid residues or a domain rich in aromatic amino acids that confers on the protein the ability to interact with the interfacial lipid bilayer. Viroporin oligomerization gives rise to hydrophilic pores at the membranes of virus-infected cells. As the list of known viroporins steadily grows, recent research efforts focus on deciphering the actions of the viroporins poliovirus 2B, alphavirus 6K, HIV-1 Vpu and influenza virus M2. All these proteins can enhance the passage of ions and small molecules through membranes depending on their concentration gradient. Future work will lengthen the list of viroporins and will provide a deeper understanding of their mechanisms of action.
病毒孔蛋白是一类参与多种病毒功能的蛋白质，包括促进病毒颗粒从细胞中释放。这些蛋白质还会影响细胞功能，包括细胞囊泡系统、糖蛋白运输和膜通透性。病毒孔蛋白对于病毒复制并非必不可少，但它们的存在会促进病毒生长。病毒孔蛋白约由60 - 120个氨基酸组成，具有一个疏水跨膜结构域，该结构域与脂质双层相互作用并使其扩张。一些病毒孔蛋白还包含其他基序，如碱性氨基酸残基或富含芳香族氨基酸的结构域，这些结构域赋予蛋白质与界面脂质双层相互作用的能力。病毒孔蛋白寡聚化会在病毒感染细胞的膜上形成亲水孔道。随着已知病毒孔蛋白的种类不断增加，最近的研究工作集中在解析脊髓灰质炎病毒2B、甲病毒6K、HIV - 1 Vpu和流感病毒M2等病毒孔蛋白的作用机制。所有这些蛋白质都能根据离子和小分子的浓度梯度增强它们通过膜的能力。未来的研究将增加病毒孔蛋白的种类，并更深入地了解它们的作用机制。
