Publication Abstract from PubMed
Poxviruses encode immuno-modulatory proteins capable of subverting host defenses. The poxvirus vaccinia expresses a small 14-kDa protein, N1L, that is critical for virulence. We report the crystal structure of N1L, which reveals an unexpected but striking resemblance to host apoptotic regulators of the B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) family. Although N1L lacks detectable Bcl-2 homology (BH) motifs at the sequence level, we show that N1L binds with high affinity to the BH3 peptides of pro-apoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins in vitro, consistent with a role for N1L in modulating host antiviral defenses.
Vaccinia virus N1L protein resembles a B cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) family protein.,Aoyagi M, Zhai D, Jin C, Aleshin AE, Stec B, Reed JC, Liddington RC Protein Sci. 2007 Jan;16(1):118-24. Epub 2006 Nov 22. PMID:17123957[1]
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
