Urbano Ana Catarina, Ferreira Fernando
CIISA-Centro de Investigação Interdisciplinar em Sanidade Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária, Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida da Universidade Técnica, 1300-477 Lisboa, Portugal.
Vaccines (Basel). 2020 Oct 3;8(4):585. doi: 10.3390/vaccines8040585.
The recent incursions of African swine fever (ASF), a severe, highly contagious, transboundary viral disease that affects members of the Suidae family, in Europe and China have had a catastrophic impact on trade and pig production, with serious implications for global food security. Despite efforts made over past decades, there is no vaccine or treatment available for preventing and controlling the ASF virus (ASFV) infection, and there is an urgent need to develop novel strategies. Genome condensation and packaging are essential processes in the life cycle of viruses. The involvement of viral DNA-binding proteins in the regulation of virulence genes, transcription, DNA replication, and repair make them significant targets. pA104R is a highly conserved HU/IHF-like DNA-packaging protein identified in the ASFV nucleoid that appears to be profoundly involved in the spatial organization and packaging of the ASFV genome. Here, we briefly review the components of the ASFV packaging machinery, the structure, function, and phylogeny of pA104R, and its potential as a target for vaccine and drug development.
非洲猪瘟（ASF）是一种严重、高度传染性的跨界病毒性疾病，影响猪科动物。最近，ASF在欧洲和中国的爆发对贸易和生猪生产造成了灾难性影响，对全球粮食安全产生了严重影响。尽管在过去几十年中做出了努力，但目前尚无预防和控制非洲猪瘟病毒（ASFV）感染的疫苗或治疗方法，因此迫切需要制定新的策略。基因组浓缩和包装是病毒生命周期中的关键过程。病毒DNA结合蛋白参与毒力基因调控、转录、DNA复制和修复，使其成为重要靶点。pA104R是在ASFV类核中发现的一种高度保守的HU/IHF样DNA包装蛋白，似乎在ASFV基因组的空间组织和包装中发挥着重要作用。在此，我们简要回顾了ASFV包装机制的组成部分、pA104R的结构、功能和系统发育，以及其作为疫苗和药物开发靶点的潜力。
