
doi: 10.13028/9pmf-a841
handle: 20.500.14038/31975
Two decades after the discovery of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV), Hepatitis C infection still persists to be a global health problem. With the recent approval of the first set of directly acting antivirals (DAAs), the rate of sustained viral response for HCV-infected patients increased significantly. However, a complete cure has not been found yet. Drug development efforts primarily target NS3/4A protease, bifunctional serine protease-RNA helicase of HCV. HCV NS3/4A is critical in viral function; protease domain processes the viral polyprotein and helicase domain aids replication of HCV genome by unwinding double stranded RNA transcripts produced by NS5B, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of HCV. Protease and helicase domains can be isolated, expressed and purified separately while retaining function. Isolated domains of HCV NS3/4A have been extensively used in biochemical and biophysical studies for scientific and therapeutic purposes to evaluate functional capability and mechanism. However, these domains are highly interdependent and modulate the activities of each other bidirectionally. Interdomain dependence was demonstrated in comparative studies where activities of isolated domains versus the full length protein were evaluated. Nevertheless, specific factors affecting interdependence have not been thoroughly studied. Chapter II investigates the domain-domain interface formed between protease and helicase domains as a determinant in interdependence. Molecular dynamics simulations performed on single chain NS3/4A constructs demonstrated the importance of interface in the coupled dynamics of the two domains. The role of the interface in interdomain communication was experimentally probed by disrupting the domain-domain interface through Ala-scanning mutations in selected residues in the interface with significant buried surface areas. These interface mutants were assayed for both helicase and protease related activities. Instead of downregulating the activities of either domain, interface mutants caused enhancement ...
570, Nucleotides, Digestive System Diseases, and Proteins, Biophysics, 610, Hepacivirus, Therapeutics, Viral Nonstructural Proteins, Biochemistry, and Nucleosides, Pharmaceutical Preparations, Virus Diseases, Nucleic Acids, Enzymes and Coenzymes, Viruses, and Structural Biology, Amino Acids, Peptides
570, Nucleotides, Digestive System Diseases, and Proteins, Biophysics, 610, Hepacivirus, Therapeutics, Viral Nonstructural Proteins, Biochemistry, and Nucleosides, Pharmaceutical Preparations, Virus Diseases, Nucleic Acids, Enzymes and Coenzymes, Viruses, and Structural Biology, Amino Acids, Peptides
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