The hepatitis C virus minigenome: A new cellular model for studying viral replication
Journal of Virological Methods. 2007-06-01; 142(1-2): 59-66
DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2007.01.005
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Dumas E(1), Masante C, Astier-Gin T, Lapaillerie D, Ventura M.
Author information:
(1)CNRS UMR 5097, Université Victor Segalen Bordeaux 2, Institut Fédératif de Recherches 66 Pathologies Infectieuses et Cancer, 146 rue Léo Saignat, 33076
Bordeaux Cedex, France.
The cellular models used usually to study hepatitis C virus replication involve coupling between translation and replication. Because this linkage makes detailedanalyses difficult a new cellular model was developed where replication is rendered independent of translation. The RNA replication was studied using RNA minigenomes where the reporter gene was flanked by the two untranslated regions of HCV. It was shown that these RNA minigenomes could be stably replicated into Huh7 cells expressing the HCV replication complex. This was obtained either by constitutively expressing the non-structural proteins into Huh7 hepatoma cells or by using Huh7 cells harboring replicons.