The 7a accessory protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus acts as an RNA silencing suppressor.

Karjee, Sumona; Minhas, Ankita; Sood, Vikas; Ponia, Sanket S; Banerjea, Akhil C; Chow, Vincent T K; Mukherjee, Sunil K; Lal, Sunil K

RNA silencing suppressors (RSSs) are well studied for plant viruses but are not well defined to date for animal viruses. Here, we have identified an RSS from a medically important positive-sense mammalian virus, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus. The viral 7a accessory protein suppressed both transgene and virus-induced gene silencing by reducing the levels of small interfering RNA (siRNA). The suppression of silencing was analyzed by two independent assays, and the middle region (amino acids [aa] 32 to 89) of 7a was responsible for suppression. Finally, the RNA suppression property and the enhancement of heterologous replicon activity by the 7a protein were confirmed for animal cell lines.