title: Endogenous hepatitis C virus homolog fragments in European rabbit and hare genomes replicate in cell culture.
abstract: Endogenous retroviruses, non-retroviral RNA viruses and DNA viruses have been found in the mammalian genomes. The origin of Hepatitis C virus (HCV), the major cause of chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, and hepatocellular carcinoma in humans, remains unclear since its discovery. Here we show that fragments homologous to HCV structural and non-structural (NS) proteins present in the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and hare (Lepus europaeus) genomes replicate in bovine cell cultures. The HCV genomic homolog fragments were demonstrated by RT-PCR, PCR, mass spectrometry, and replication in bovine cell cultures by immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and immunogold electron microscopy (IEM) using specific MAbs for HCV NS3, NS4A, and NS5 proteins. These findings may lead to novel research approaches on the HCV origin, genesis, evolution and diversity.
authors.affiliation: Departement of Veterinary Clinics, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas de Abel Salazar (ICBAS), Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Eliane
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Marques
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Osório
authors.forename: Júlio
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Carvalheira
authors.forename: Gertrude
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thompson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D002417:Cattle; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D034621:Hares / Q000235:genetics / Q000821:virology; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011817:Rabbits; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases; D043583:Nucleoside-Triphosphatase; D053487:DEAD-box RNA Helicases; D000085242:Viral Proteases
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins; C084422:NS3 protein, hepatitis C virus; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases; D043583:Nucleoside-Triphosphatase; D053487:DEAD-box RNA Helicases; D000085242:Viral Proteases; C093542:NS4 protein, hepatitis C virus