The biological role of the protein encoded by the alternative open reading frame (core+1/ARF) of the Hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome remains elusive, as does the significance of the production of corresponding antibodies in HCV infection. We investigated the prevalence of anti-core and anti-core+1/ARFP antibodies in HCV-positive blood donors from Cambodia, using peptide and recombinant protein-b...

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) core protein, expressed with a Semliki Forest virus replicon, self-assembles into HCV-like particles (HCV-LP) at the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane, providing an opportunity to study HCV assembly and morphogenesis by electron microscopy. This model was used to investigate whether the processing of the HCV core protein by the signal peptide peptidase (SPP) is require...

The protein DDX3X is a DEAD-box RNA helicase that is essential for the hepatitis C virus (HCV) life cycle. The HCV core protein has been shown to bind to DDX3X both in vitro and in vivo. However, the specific interactions between these two proteins and the functional importance of these interactions for the HCV viral life cycle remain unclear. We show that amino acids 16-36 near the N-terminus ...

The present review article is an update on various features of hepatitis C virus (HCV) core protein including its molecular biology, role in HCV replication, involvement in HCV pathogenesis, etiological role in hepatocellular carcinogenesis, significance in diagnosis and vaccination against HCV infection. Core protein is a structural protein of HCV virus and has only recently been characterized...

Chronic hepatitis C patients display many genotype-specific clinical features of HCV infection. The core proteins encoded by different genotypes dysregulate numerous sets of distinct host genes. In this study we tested the hypothesis that HCV core proteins 1b and 3a would actually act on a limited number of independent cellular players, as well as on several functionally linked gene products. S...

Short hairpin RNAs (shRNAs) efficiently inhibit gene expression by RNA interference. Here, we report the efficient inhibition by DNA-based vector-derived shRNAs of core protein expression in Huh-7 cells. The shRNAs were designed to target the core region of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome. The core region is the most conserved region in the HCV genome, making it an ideal target for shRNAs. W...

BACKGROUND Recent studies suggest that HCV infection is associated with progressive declines in pulmonary function in patients with underlying pulmonary diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Few molecular studies have addressed the inflammatory aspects of HCV-associated pulmonary disease. Because IL-8 plays a fundamental role in reactive airway diseases, we examined...

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) often causes chronic infection and may lead to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We have shown previously that HCV core protein has pleiotropic functions, including transcriptional regulation of a number of cellular genes, although the mechanism for gene regulation remains unclear. In this study, a mammalian two-hybrid screen identified a novel binding partner, HS1-associa...

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is characterized by a strong propensity toward chronicity. During chronic HCV infection, HCV core protein is implicated in deregulating cytokine expression that associates with chronic inflammation. A20 is known as a powerful suppressor in cytokine signaling, in this study, we explored the A20 expression in macrophages induced by HCV core protein and the involv...