Increasing rate of cleavage at boundary between non-structural proteins 4B and 5A inhibits replication of hepatitis C virus.

ABSTRACT: In hepatitis C virus, non-structural proteins are cleaved from the viral polyprotein by viral encoded proteases. Although proteolytic processing goes to completion, the rate of cleavage differs between different boundaries, primarily due to the sequence at these positions. However, it is not known whether slow cleavage is important for viral replication or a consequence of restrictions on sequences that can be tolerated at the cleaved ends of non-structural proteins. To address this question, mutations were introduced into the NS4B side of the NS4B5A boundary, and their effect on replication and polyprotein processing was examined in the context of a subgenomic replicon. Single mutations that modestly increased the rate of boundary processing were phenotypically silent, but a double mutati

SUBMITTER: Herod MR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3249110 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature