Characterization of regulatory functions of the varicella-zoster virus gene 63-encoded protein

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) gene 63 encodes a protein (IE63) with a predicted molecular mass of 30.5 kDa which has amino acid similarities to the immediate-early (IE) protein 22 (ICP22) of herpes simplex virus type 1. ICP22 is a polypeptide synthesized in herpes simplex virus type 1-infected cells, and as is the case for its VZV counterpart, its regulatory functions are unknown. On the basis of the VZV DNA sequence, it has been shown that IE63 exhibits hydrophilic and acidic properties, suggesting that this protein could play a regulatory role during the infectious cycle. We report in this article cotransfection experiments which demonstrate that the VZV gene 63 protein strongly represses, in a dose-dependent manner, the expression of VZV gene 62. On the other hand, transient expression of the VZV gene 63 protein can promote activation of the thymidine kinase gene but cannot affect the expression of the genes encoding glycoproteins I and II. The results of transient expression experiments strongly suggest that the VZV gene 63 protein could play a pivotal role in the repression of IE gene expression as well as in the activation of early gene expression.