Neutralizing antibody-resistant hepatitis C virus cell-to-cell transmission.

ABSTRACT: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) can initiate infection by cell-free particle and cell-cell contact-dependent transmission. In this study we use a novel infectious coculture system to examine these alternative modes of infection. Cell-to-cell transmission is relatively resistant to anti-HCV glycoprotein monoclonal antibodies and polyclonal immunoglobulin isolated from infected individuals, providing an effective strategy for escaping host humoral immune responses. Chimeric viruses expressing the structural proteins representing the seven major HCV genotypes demonstrate neutralizing antibody-resistant cell-to-cell transmission. HCV entry is a multistep process involving numerous receptors. In this study we demonstrate that, in contrast to earlier reports, CD81 and the tight-junction components claud

SUBMITTER: Brimacombe CL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3014195 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature