Hepatitis B virus particle formation in the absence of pregenomic RNA and reverse transcriptase.
Cytoplasmic hepatitis B virus (HBV) capsids are not enveloped and secreted unless the packaged RNA pregenome is reverse transcribed. The expression of the capsid protein C, together with envelope proteins in the absence of pregenomic RNA, produced normal amounts of intracellular capsids, but the secretion of virion-like particles was greatly reduced. The I97L C protein mutant, allowing immature nucleocapsid envelopment in the background of an HBV genome, did not promote the envelopment of capsids lacking a pregenome, suggesting that this mutation is not sufficient to induce secretion competence independently of the pregenome.
Department of Virology, University of Göttingen, Kreuzbergring 57, D-37075 Göttingen, Germany.
Wiebke
W
Schormann
Anke
A
Kraft
Dirk
D
Ponsel
Volker
V
Bruss
D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000502:physiology; D002460:Cell Line; D016679:Genome, Viral; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000502:physiology*; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000502:physiology*; D014771:Virion / Q000502:physiology*
D036022:Capsid Proteins; D012367:RNA, Viral; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase