title: Identification of amino acid variants in the hepatitis C virus non-structural protein 4A.
abstract: Chronic infections by hepatitis C virus (HCV) are a major cause of cirrhosis and hepatic cancer. The replication of HCV involves translation and proteolytic processing of polyproteins. The HCV single-stranded RNA encodes a single polyprotein of C/E1/E2/p7/NS2/NS3/NS4A/NS4B/NS5A/NS5B. The structural proteins, C, E1, E2, and p7, arise from the viral polyprotein by host proteases. Cleavage at the non-structural NS2/NS3 junction is performed by the NS2 protease. NS3 forms a complex with NS4A to cleave the rest of the viral polyprotein. The central 12-amino-acid sequence of NS4A, 21-GSVVIVGRIILS-32 (NS4Awt) is a determinant to enhance the NS3 protease activity at the NS5A/5B junction. We found that, from 13 blood donors infected with HCV, one sample showed five amino acid changes in the NS4A central region at V23I, I25C, I30S, L31T, and S32L, and another sample showed three changes at V23I, I25C, and I30V in this region. The other 11 samples showed the NS4Awt sequence. The effect of such amino acid variations on the NS3 proteolytic activity was evaluated in vitro using the central 12-amino-acid NS4Awt sequence with specific changes joined to NS3, and NS5A/5B as a substrate. Our results indicate that the amino acid changes of NS4A at V23I and I25C do not enhance the protease activity of NS3, whereas the amino acid changes at I30S, L31T, and S32L, as well as the NS4Awt sequence, enhance NS3 activity. Our results confirm that protease cofactor, encoded in NS4A, is of major regulatory relevance for the replication cycles of HCV.
authors: Departamento de Bioquímica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico. dbamail@ymail.com
authors: Alejandro Daniel
authors: AD
authors: Bermúdez-Aguirre
authors: Luis
authors: L
authors: Padilla-Noriega
authors: Edgar
authors: E
authors: Zenteno
authors: Julio
authors: J
authors: Reyes-Leyva
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D000596:Amino Acids / Q000235:genetics*; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D005814:Genes, Viral; D014644:Genetic Variation; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020815:Polyproteins / Q000235:genetics; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; C093542:NS4 protein, hepatitis C virus; D020815:Polyproteins; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins