Premium
A virus‐derived microRNA targets immune response genes during SARS‐CoV‐2 infection
Author(s) -
Singh Meetali,
Chazal Maxime,
Quarato Piergiuseppe,
Bourdon Loan,
Malabat Christophe,
Vallet Thomas,
Vignuzzi Marco,
van der Werf Sylvie,
Behillil Sylvie,
Donati Flora,
Sauvonnet Nathalie,
Nigro Giulia,
Bourgine Maryline,
Jouvenet Nolwenn,
Cecere Germano
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
embo reports
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.584
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1469-3178
pISSN - 1469-221X
DOI - 10.15252/embr.202154341
Subject(s) - dicer , biology , microrna , interferon , virology , virus , immune system , gene , gene isoform , untranslated region , rna interference , rna , genetics
SARS‐CoV‐2 infection results in impaired interferon response in patients with severe COVID‐19. However, how SARS‐CoV‐2 interferes with host immune responses is incompletely understood. Here, we sequence small RNAs from SARS‐CoV‐2‐infected human cells and identify a microRNA (miRNA) derived from a recently evolved region of the viral genome. We show that the virus‐derived miRNA produces two miRNA isoforms in infected cells by the enzyme Dicer, which are loaded into Argonaute proteins. Moreover, the predominant miRNA isoform targets the 3′UTR of interferon‐stimulated genes and represses their expression in a miRNA‐like fashion. Finally, the two viral miRNA isoforms were detected in nasopharyngeal swabs from COVID‐19 patients. We propose that SARS‐CoV‐2 can potentially employ a virus‐derived miRNA to hijack the host miRNA machinery, which could help to evade the interferon‐mediated immune response.