Three-dimensional visualization of forming Hepatitis C virus-like particles by electron-tomography.
Hepatitis C virus infects almost 170 million people per year but its assembly pathway, architecture and the structures of its envelope proteins are poorly understood. Using electron tomography of plastic-embedded sections of insect cells, we have visualized the morphogenesis of recombinant Hepatitis C virus-like particles. Our data provide a three-dimensional sketch of viral assembly at the endoplasmic reticulum showing different budding stages and contiguity of buds. This latter phenomenon could play an important role during the assembly of wt-HCV and explain the size-heterogeneity of its particles.
Structural Biology Unit, CIC bioGUNE, CIBERehd, 48160 Derio, Spain.
Daniel
D
Badia-Martinez
Bibiana
B
Peralta
German
G
Andrés
Milagros
M
Guerra
David
D
Gil-Carton
Nicola G A
NG
Abrescia
D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D055032:Electron Microscope Tomography; D004721:Endoplasmic Reticulum / Q000821:virology; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D018411:Spodoptera; D014758:Viral Core Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D019065:Virus Assembly / Q000502:physiology*
D014758:Viral Core Proteins; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins