Fig. 7: Model of the role of microtubule mechanotransduction in host and viral genome organization during HCMV infection. | Nature Communications

Fig. 7: Model of the role of microtubule mechanotransduction in host and viral genome organization during HCMV infection.

From: Microtubule mechanotransduction refines cytomegalovirus interactions with and remodeling of host chromatin

Fig. 7

A Under normal infection conditions, acetylated microtubules not only serve to pull heterochromatic B compartments, but also euchromatic A compartments towards the viral Assembly Compartment (AC) to maximize their separation from partially phase-separated viral replication compartments (RCs). This results in interactions between viral genomes and specific, nearby euchromatic regions of the host genome. These pulling forces, effects of infection and the presence of expanding RCs result in increased A-B compartment interactions. B Loss of tubulin acetylation and microtubule-based mechanotransduction results in reduced heterochromatic B-B interactions and increased euchromatic A-A interactions, along with greater intermingling of RCs with host euchromatin. In the case of SUN1, its loss results in even greater intermingling due to its dual roles in mechanotransduction and direct control of genome organization. Created in BioRender. Rosencrance, C. (2025) https://BioRender.com/ dgwdiy8.

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