title: Hepatitis C virus cell culture replication systems: their potential use for the development of antiviral therapies.
abstract: Hepatitis C virus is a significant public health problem. Current drug regimens have low efficacy against some hepatitis C virus genotypes, while no vaccine is available. The absence of an efficient cell culture system and an accessible small animal model to study hepatitis C virus replication and pathogenesis are major obstacles to the development of effective antiviral therapies. Studies of surrogate model systems, either related viruses or chimeric viruses containing part of the hepatitis C virus genome, have given insight into hepatitis C virus replication, in addition to being a powerful tool for drug discovery. The recent development of an efficient system for the initiation of replication in cell culture provides a viable screen for inhibitors of hepatitis C virus replication. It also brings us much closer to the ultimate goal of an infectious cell culture system for hepatitis C virus.
authors.affiliation: Center for the Study of Hepatitis C, Rockefeller University, New York 10021, USA.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Randall
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Rice
mesh_terms: D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002460:Cell Line; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D012093:Replicon; D014779:Virus Replication / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents