title: Involvement of the 3' Untranslated Region in Encapsidation of the Hepatitis C Virus.
abstract: Although information regarding morphogenesis of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) is accumulating, the mechanism(s) by which the HCV genome encapsidated remains unknown. In the present study, in cell cultures producing HCV, the molecular ratios of 3' end- to 5' end-regions of the viral RNA population in the culture medium were markedly higher than those in the cells, and the ratio was highest in the virion-rich fraction. The interaction of the 3' untranslated region (UTR) with Core in vitro was stronger than that of the interaction of other stable RNA structure elements across the HCV genome. A foreign gene flanked by the 3' UTR was encapsidated by supplying both viral NS3-NS5B proteins and Core-NS2 in trans. Mutations within the conserved stem-loops of the 3' UTR were observed to dramatically diminish packaging efficiency, suggesting that the conserved apical motifs of the 3´ X region are important for HCV genome packaging. This study provides evidence of selective packaging of the HCV genome into viral particles and identified that the 3' UTR acts as a cis-acting element for encapsidation.
authors: Department of Infectious Diseases, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors: Guoli
authors: G
authors: Shi
authors: Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.|Division of Virology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Tomomi
authors: T
authors: Ando
authors: Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Ryosuke
authors: R
authors: Suzuki
authors: Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Mami
authors: M
authors: Matsuda
authors: Department of Infectious Diseases, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors: Kenji
authors: K
authors: Nakashima
authors: Department of Infectious Diseases, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors: Masahiko
authors: M
authors: Ito
authors: Research and Education center for Prevention of Global Infectious Diseases of Animals, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Tsutomu
authors: T
authors: Omatsu
authors: Research and Education center for Prevention of Global Infectious Diseases of Animals, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Mami
authors: M
authors: Oba
authors: Research Institute of Biosciences, Azabu University, Kanagawa, Japan.
authors: Hideharu
authors: H
authors: Ochiai
authors: Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Takanobu
authors: T
authors: Kato
authors: Research and Education center for Prevention of Global Infectious Diseases of Animals, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Tetsuya
authors: T
authors: Mizutani
authors: Proteo-Science Center, Ehime University, Ehime, Japan.
authors: Tatsuya
authors: T
authors: Sawasaki
authors: Department of Virology II, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo, Japan.
authors: Takaji
authors: T
authors: Wakita
authors: Department of Infectious Diseases, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Shizuoka, Japan.
authors: Tetsuro
authors: T
authors: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions / Q000502:physiology*; D020121:5' Untranslated Regions / Q000235:genetics; D002460:Cell Line; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics*; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D014771:Virion / Q000378:metabolism; D019065:Virus Assembly / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D020413:3' Untranslated Regions; D020121:5' Untranslated Regions; D012367:RNA, Viral; D017361:Viral Nonstructural Proteins