title: [Structure and function of the non-coding regions of hepatitis C viral RNA].
abstract: At the 5' and 3' end of genomic HCV RNA there are two highly conserved, untranslated regions, 5'UTR and 3'UTR. These regions are organized into spatially ordered structures and they play key functions in regulation of processes of the viral life cycle. Most nucleotides of the region located at the 5' side of the coding sequence serve as an internal ribosomal entry site, IRES, which directs cap-independent translation. The RNA fragment present at the 3' end of the genome is required for virus replication and probably contributes to translation of viral proteins. During virus replication its genomic strand is transcribed into a strand of minus polarity, the replicative strand. Its 3' terminus is responsible for initiation of synthesis of descendant genomic strands. This article summarizes our current knowledge on the structure and function of the non-coding regions of hepatitis C genomic RNA, 5'UTR and 3'UTR, and the complementary sequences of the replicative viral strand.
authors.affiliation: Pracownia Chemii i Biochemii RNA, Instytut Chemii Bioorganicznej PAN, ul. Noskowskiego 12/14, 61-704 Poznań.
authors.forename: Mariola
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dutkiewicz
authors.forename: Agata
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Swiqtkowska
authors.forename: Jerzy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ciesiołka
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D020121:5' Untranslated Regions / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017124:Conserved Sequence / Q000235:genetics; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D014176:Protein Biosynthesis / Q000502:physiology; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D014779:Virus Replication / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D020121:5' Untranslated Regions; D012367:RNA, Viral