title: Initiation of RNA replication of cloned Taiwan-3 isolate of hepatitis delta virus genotype II in cultured cells.
abstract: Hepatitis delta virus (HDV) genotype II is the predominant genotype in Taiwan and is associated with less progressive disease than genotype I. Although the Taiwan-3 (T3) clone was the first genotype II HDV isolated in Taiwan, its replication in cultured cells has not previously been established. Here, we demonstrate that cloned T3 HDV is capable of replicating in cultured cells. Furthermore, we show that: (1). the replication level of T3 clones is 100-fold lower than that of a genotype I HDV prototype of Italian origin; (2). both forms of the genotype II T3 delta antigen are expressed; and (3). T3 HDV undergoes RNA editing during replication, with 4.8% of the T3 genomes showing evidence of editing. The low level of RNA replication may be related to the milder clinical outcomes of genotype II HDV infections.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Kwei-Shan, Tao-yang 333, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Feng-Ming
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Chuan-Mo
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Tzu-Chi
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Mei
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015153:Blotting, Western; D019556:COS Cells; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D003851:Deoxyribonucleases / Q000378:metabolism; D005838:Genotype; D003699:Hepatitis D / Q000821:virology*; D003698:Hepatitis Delta Virus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008957:Models, Genetic; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010957:Plasmids / Q000378:metabolism; D012313:RNA / Q000378:metabolism*; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000378:metabolism*; D014162:Transfection; D014779:Virus Replication
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral; D012313:RNA; D003851:Deoxyribonucleases