Retroviral replication proceeds through the integration of a DNA copy of the viral RNA genome into the host cellular genome, a process that is mediated by the viral integrase (IN) protein. IN catalyzes two distinct chemical reactions: 3'-processing, whereby the viral DNA is recessed by a di- or trinucleotide at its 3'-ends, and strand transfer, in which the processed viral DNA ends are inserted...

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) often causes a prolonged and persistent infection, and an association between hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and HCV infection has been noted. The pathogenesis of liver damage is at least in part related to virus-mediated factors. Understanding the molecular basis of pathogenesis is a major challenge in gaining insight into HCV-associated disease progression. Recent expe...

siRNA (small interfering RNA) interference represents an exciting new technology that could have therapeutic applications for the treatment of viral infections. However, a major challenge in the use of siRNA as a therapeutic agent is the development of a suitable delivery system. We demonstrated that a new non-viral transgene carrier, recombinant archaeal histone from the hyperthermophile Pyroc...

Sindbis virus is an enveloped positive-sense RNA virus in the alphavirus genus. The nucleocapsid core contains the genomic RNA surrounded by 240 copies of a single capsid protein. The capsid protein is multifunctional, and its roles include acting as a protease, controlling the specificity of RNA that is encapsidated into nucleocapsid cores, and interacting with viral glycoproteins to promote t...

A virus-specific ribonucleoprotein complex is present in the cytoplasm of reticuloendotheliosis virus-transformed chicken bone marrow cells. This ribonucleoprotein complex contains viral reverse transcriptase activity and may represent a precursor to the budding virion. The major viral polypeptide associated with the ribonucleoprotein complex was a polypeptide with a molecular weight of 63,000....

Certain core and membrane proteins of vaccinia virus undergo proteolytic cleavage at consensus AG/X sites. The processing of core proteins is coupled to morphogenesis and is inhibited by the drug rifampin, whereas processing of the A17 membrane protein occurs at an earlier stage of assembly and is unaffected by the drug. A temperature-sensitive mutant with a lesion in the I7L gene exhibits bloc...