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  • Association of hepatitis C virus replication complexes with microtubules and actin filaments is dependent on the interaction of NS3 and NS5A.

Association of hepatitis C virus replication complexes with microtubules and actin filaments is dependent on the interaction of NS3 and NS5A.

Journal of virology (2008-06-20)
Chao-Kuen Lai, King-Song Jeng, Keigo Machida, Michael M C Lai
ABSTRACT

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA replication complex (RC), which is composed of viral nonstructural (NS) proteins and host cellular proteins, replicates the viral RNA genome in association with intracellular membranes. Two viral NS proteins, NS3 and NS5A, are essential elements of the RC. Here, by using immunoprecipitation and fluorescence resonance energy transfer assays, we demonstrated that NS3 and NS5A interact with tubulin and actin. Furthermore, immunofluorescence microscopy and electron microscopy revealed that HCV RCs were aligned along microtubules and actin filaments in both HCV replicon cells and HCV-infected cells. In addition, the movement of RCs was inhibited when microtubules or actin filaments were depolymerized by colchicine and cytochalasin B, respectively. Based on our observations, we propose that microtubules and actin filaments provide the tracks for the movement of HCV RCs to other regions in the cell, and the molecular interactions between RCs and microtubules, or RCs and actin filaments, are mediated by NS3 and NS5A.

MATERIALS
Product Number
Brand
Product Description

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4′,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride, powder, BioReagent, suitable for cell culture, ≥98% (HPLC and TLC), suitable for fluorescence
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Fibrin In Vitro Angiogenesis Assay, The Fibrin Gel In Vitro Angiogenesis Assay Kit represents a simple model of angiogenesis in which the induction or inhibition of tube formation by exogenous signals can be easily monitored.
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4′,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride, suitable for fluorescence, BioReagent, ≥95.0% (HPLC)
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DAPI, for nucleic acid staining