New insights into HCV transmission

What is it about?

Although several cell surface proteins have been identified as entry factors for Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), precise mechanisms regulating its transmission into hepatic cells are still unclear. In our study, we used Monensin A, an ionophore that is known to raise the intracellular pH, and demonstrated that cell-free and cell-to-cell transmission are both pH-dependent processes. We generated Monensin-resistant viruses that displayed different entry routes and biophysical properties. Thanks to these mutants, we highlighted the importance of the hypervariable region 1 (HVR1) in E2 envelope protein for the association of particles with apolipoprotein E, which in turn might control the pH-dependency of cell-free and cell-to-cell transmission.

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