Vaccinia virus induces cellular mRNA degradation

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Abstract
The infection of mouse L cells with vaccinia virus induced induced a rapid inhibition of cellular polypeptide synthesis and a diversion of protein synthesis to the exclusive production of viral polypeptides. This shutoff of cell-specific protein synthesis was achieved by a novel mechanism by which the virus induced the rapid degradation of cellular mRNA. Concurrent with the degradation of cellular mRNA, the virus proceeds in the orderly temporal expression of its own genetic information. The effect of vaccinia virus infection upon 2 abundant L-cell mRNA was assessed by using the highly conserved c[complementary]DNA sequences that encode chicken .beta.-actin and rat .alpha.-tubulin. Hybridization analyses demonstrated that throughout infection there is a rapid and progressive degradation of both of these mRNA. After 3 h of infection they are reduced to < 50% of their concentration in uninfected L cells, and between 8 to 10 h they are almost entirely degraded. This observation explains in part the mechanism by which vaccinia virus inhibits host cell protein synthesis.