Abstract: In order to investigate the mechanism of NF-κB in enhancing CyHV-2 replication, transcriptional and translational levels of CyHV-2 genes at 24, 72 and 96 h post CyHV-2 infection in the presence of NF-κB agonist were monitored by RT- qPCR and Western Blot assays.The results showed that the transcriptional levels and protein levels of CyHV-2 genes were increased at 72 and 96 h in the presence of NF-κB agonist.To further elucidate how NF-κB affects the transcription and translation of CyHV-2, the binding sites of the promoter region for NF-κB were predicted and dual luciferase reporter gene experiments were performed to study the regulatory role of NF-κB on viral gene expression.The experimental results showed that NF-κB overexpression increased CyHV-2 promoter activity, further suggesting that NF-κB promotes viral replication by activating the promoter of CyHV-2 genes.This study should provide novel strategies for anti-CyHV-2 drugs and enhance the understanding of CyHV-2 replication.

Key words: CyHV-2, NF-κB, promoter, transcriptional regulation, dual luciferase reporter gene