Merkel Cell Polyomavirus (MCPyV) was recently discovered as a novel human polyomavirus that is associated with ~80% of Merkel Cell Carcinomas. The Large Tumor antigen (LT) is an early viral protein which has a variety of functions, including manipulation of the cell cycle and initiating viral DNA replication. Phosphorylation plays a critical regulatory role for polyomavirus LT proteins, but no investigation of MCPyV LT phosphorylation has been performed to date. In this report mass spectrometry analysis reveals three unique phosphorylation sites: T271, T297 and T299. In vivo replication assays confirm that phosphorylation of T271 does not play a role in viral replication, while modification at T297 and T299 have dramatic and opposing effects on LT’s ability to initiate replication from the viral origin. We test these mutants for their ability to bind, unwind, and act as a functional helicase at the viral origin. These studies provide a framework for understanding how phosphorylation of LT may dynamically regulate viral replication. Although the natural host cell of MCPyV has not yet been established, this work provides a foundation for understanding how LT activity is regulated and provides tools for better exploring this regulation in both natural host cells and Merkel cells.

Papillomavirus E2 is a multifunctional viral protein that regulates many aspects of the viral life cycle including viral episome maintenance, transcriptional activation, and repression. E2 is degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway. Cellular bromodomain protein Brd4 has been implicated in the stabilization of the E2 protein. E2 normally shuttles between the cytoplasm and the nucleus. In this study, we demonstrate that E2 ubiquitylation mostly occurs in the cytoplasm. We also find that the interaction with Brd4 promotes nuclear retention of papillomavirus E2 proteins and contributes to their stabilization in the nucleus. Compared to wild type E2 proteins, nuclear-localization-defective mutants are rapidly degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome pathway; however, co-expression of Brd4 redirects these mutants into the nucleus and significantly increases their stability. We further demonstrate that tethering E2 proteins to chromatin as either double-bromodomain fusion proteins or histone 2B (H2B) fusion proteins significantly stabilizes the E2 proteins. Our studies suggest that chromatin recruitment of the E2 protein via interaction with Brd4 prevents E2 ubiquitylation and proteasomal degradation in the cytoplasm, leading to its stabilization in the nucleus. These studies bring new insights for understanding Brd4-mediated E2 stabilization, and provide an additional mechanism by which the chromatin-associated Brd4 regulates E2 functions.