A hepatitis C virus cis-acting replication element forms a long-range RNA-RNA interaction with upstream RNA sequences in NS5B.

ABSTRACT: The genome of hepatitis C virus (HCV) contains cis-acting replication elements (CREs) comprised of RNA stem-loop structures located in both the 5' and 3' noncoding regions (5' and 3' NCRs) and in the NS5B coding sequence. Through the application of several algorithmically independent bioinformatic methods to detect phylogenetically conserved, thermodynamically favored RNA secondary structures, we demonstrate a long-range interaction between sequences in the previously described CRE (5BSL3.2, now SL9266) with a previously predicted unpaired sequence located 3' to SL9033, approximately 200 nucleotides upstream. Extensive reverse genetic analysis both supports this prediction and demonstrates a functional requirement in genome replication. By mutagenesis of the Con-1 replicon, we show that di

SUBMITTER: Diviney S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2546899 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature