This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Luo, G.
Right arrow Articles by Cai, Z.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Luo, G.
Right arrow Articles by Cai, Z.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Virology, March 2003, p. 3312-3318, Vol. 77, No. 5
0022-538X/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JVI.77.5.3312-3318.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Role of the 5'-Proximal Stem-Loop Structure of the 5' Untranslated Region in Replication and Translation of Hepatitis C Virus RNA

Guangxiang Luo,* Shaojie Xin,{dagger} and Zhaohui Cai

Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky 40536

Received 27 September 2002/ Accepted 25 November 2002

Sequences of the untranslated regions at the 5' and 3' ends (5'UTR and 3'UTR) of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA genome are highly conserved and contain cis-acting RNA elements for HCV RNA replication. The HCV 5'UTR consists of two distinct RNA elements, a short 5'-proximal stem-loop RNA element (nucleotides 1 to 43) and a longer element of internal ribosome entry site. To determine the sequence and structural requirements of the 5'-proximal stem-loop RNA element in HCV RNA replication and translation, a mutagenesis analysis was preformed by nucleotide deletions and substitutions. Effects of mutations in the 5'-proximal stem-loop RNA element on HCV RNA replication were determined by using a cell-based HCV replicon replication system. Deletion of the first 20 nucleotides from the 5' end resulted in elimination of cell colony formation. Likewise, disruption of the 5'-proximal stem-loop by nucleotide substitutions abolished the ability of HCV RNA to induce cell colony formation. However, restoration of the 5'-proximal stem-loop by compensatory mutations with different nucleotides rescued the ability of the subgenomic HCV RNA to replicate in Huh7 cells. In addition, deletion and nucleotide substitutions of the 5'-proximal stem-loop structure, including the restored stem-loop by compensatory mutations, all resulted in reduction of translation by two- to fivefold, suggesting that the 5'-proximal stem-loop RNA element also modulates HCV RNA translation. These findings demonstrate that the 5'-proximal stem-loop of the HCV RNA is a cis-acting RNA element that regulates HCV RNA replication and translation.


* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, 800 Rose St., MN378 UKMC, Lexington, KY 40536-0298. Phone: (859) 257-5577. Fax: (859) 257-8994. E-mail: gluo0{at}uky.edu.

{dagger} Present address: 302 Infectious Diseases Hospital, Beijing, China.


Journal of Virology, March 2003, p. 3312-3318, Vol. 77, No. 5
0022-538X/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/JVI.77.5.3312-3318.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.




This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Friebe, P., Bartenschlager, R. (2009). Role of RNA Structures in Genome Terminal Sequences of the Hepatitis C Virus for Replication and Assembly. J. Virol. 83: 11989-11995 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Diviney, S., Tuplin, A., Struthers, M., Armstrong, V., Elliott, R. M., Simmonds, P., Evans, D. J. (2008). A Hepatitis C Virus cis-Acting Replication Element Forms a Long-Range RNA-RNA Interaction with Upstream RNA Sequences in NS5B. J. Virol. 82: 9008-9022 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Huang, P., Goff, D. A., Huang, Q., Martinez, A., Xu, X., Crowder, S., Issakani, S. D., Anderson, E., Sheng, N., Achacoso, P., Yen, A., Kinsella, T., Darwish, I. S., Kolluri, R., Hong, H., Qu, K., Stauffer, E., Goldstein, E., Singh, R., Payan, D. G., Lu, H. H. (2008). Discovery and Characterization of Substituted Diphenyl Heterocyclic Compounds as Potent and Selective Inhibitors of Hepatitis C Virus Replication. Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 52: 1419-1429 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chang, K.-S., Jiang, J., Cai, Z., Luo, G. (2007). Human Apolipoprotein E Is Required for Infectivity and Production of Hepatitis C Virus in Cell Culture. J. Virol. 81: 13783-13793 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chang, K.-S., Cai, Z., Zhang, C., Sen, G. C., Williams, B. R. G., Luo, G. (2006). Replication of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) RNA in Mouse Embryonic Fibroblasts: Protein Kinase R (PKR)-Dependent and PKR-Independent Mechanisms for Controlling HCV RNA Replication and Mediating Interferon Activities.. J. Virol. 80: 7364-7374 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Hsu, Y.-H., Chen, H.-C., Cheng, J., Annamali, P., Lin, B.-Y., Wu, C.-T., Yeh, W.-B., Lin, N.-S. (2006). Crucial Role of the 5' Conserved Structure of Bamboo Mosaic Virus Satellite RNA in Downregulation of Helper Viral RNA Replication. J. Virol. 80: 2566-2574 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McCormick, C. J., Brown, D., Griffin, S., Challinor, L., Rowlands, D. J., Harris, M. (2006). A link between translation of the hepatitis C virus polyprotein and polymerase function; possible consequences for hyperphosphorylation of NS5A. J. Gen. Virol. 87: 93-102 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Cai, Z., Zhang, C., Chang, K.-S., Jiang, J., Ahn, B.-C., Wakita, T., Liang, T. J., Luo, G. (2005). Robust Production of Infectious Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) from Stably HCV cDNA-Transfected Human Hepatoma Cells. J. Virol. 79: 13963-13973 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Beguiristain, N., Robertson, H. D., Gomez, J. (2005). RNase III cleavage demonstrates a long range RNA: RNA duplex element flanking the hepatitis C virus internal ribosome entry site. Nucleic Acids Res 33: 5250-5261 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Cai, Z., Yi, M., Zhang, C., Luo, G. (2005). Mutagenesis Analysis of the rGTP-Specific Binding Site of Hepatitis C Virus RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase. J. Virol. 79: 11607-11617 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Zhang, C., Cai, Z., Kim, Y.-C., Kumar, R., Yuan, F., Shi, P.-Y., Kao, C., Luo, G. (2005). Stimulation of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) Nonstructural Protein 3 (NS3) Helicase Activity by the NS3 Protease Domain and by HCV RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase. J. Virol. 79: 8687-8697 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Prabhu, R., Khalap, N., Burioni, R., Clementi, M., Garry, R. F., Dash, S. (2004). Inhibition of Hepatitis C Virus Nonstructural Protein, Helicase Activity, and Viral Replication by a Recombinant Human Antibody Clone. Am. J. Pathol. 165: 1163-1173 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Cai, Z., Liang, T. J., Luo, G. (2004). Effects of Mutations of the Initiation Nucleotides on Hepatitis C Virus RNA Replication in the Cell. J. Virol. 78: 3633-3643 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • McCormick, C. J., Challinor, L., Macdonald, A., Rowlands, D. J., Harris, M. (2004). Introduction of replication-competent hepatitis C virus transcripts using a tetracycline-regulable baculovirus delivery system. J. Gen. Virol. 85: 429-439 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • De Tomassi, A., Pizzuti, M., Traboni, C. (2003). Hep3B Human Hepatoma Cells Support Replication of the Wild-Type and a 5'-End Deletion Mutant GB Virus B Replicon. J. Virol. 77: 11875-11881 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • RAY, D., WU, B., WHITE, K. A. (2003). A second functional RNA domain in the 5' UTR of the Tomato bushy stunt virus genome: Intra- and interdomain interactions mediate viral RNA replication. RNA 9: 1232-1245 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • El-Hage, N., Luo, G. (2003). Replication of hepatitis C virus RNA occurs in a membrane-bound replication complex containing nonstructural viral proteins and RNA. J. Gen. Virol. 84: 2761-2769 [Abstract] [Full Text]