Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27867765›Full record

ArticlePeerJ2016

Charge neutralization as the major factor for the assembly of nucleocapsid-like particles from C-terminal truncated hepatitis C virus core protein.

Theo Luiz Ferraz de Souza, Sheila Maria Barbosa de Lima, Vanessa L de Azevedo Braga, David S Peabody, Davis Fernandes Ferreira, M Lucia Bianconi, Andre Marco de Oliveira Gomes, Jerson Lima Silva, Andréa Cheble de Oliveira

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PeerJ, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 33% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Theo Luiz Ferraz de Souza *Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Sheila Maria Barbosa de Lima *Bio-Manguinhos, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Vanessa L de Azevedo BragaInstituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Biologia Estrutural e Bioimagem, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
David S PeabodyDepartment of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology and Cancer Research and Treatment Center, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, United States.
Davis Fernandes FerreiraInstituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Biologia Estrutural e Bioimagem, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
M Lucia BianconiPrograma de Biologia Estrutural, Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Andre Marco de Oliveira GomesInstituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Biologia Estrutural e Bioimagem, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Jerson Lima SilvaInstituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Biologia Estrutural e Bioimagem, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Andréa Cheble de OliveiraInstituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia de Biologia Estrutural e Bioimagem, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro · BRFundação Oswaldo Cruz · BRUniversity of New Mexico · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHepatitis C virus (HCV) core protein, in addition to its structural role to form the nucleocapsid assembly, plays a critical role in HCV pathogenesis by interfering in several cellular processes, including microRNA and mRNA homeostasis. The C-terminal truncated HCV core protein (C124) is intrinsically unstructured in solution and is able to interact with unspecific nucleic acids, in the micromolar range, and to assemble into nucleocapsid-like particles (NLPs)

methodsSpectroscopic techniques, transmission electron microscopy and calorimetry were used to better understand the propensity of C124 to fold or to multimerize into NLPs when subjected to different conditions or in the presence of unspecific nucleic acids of equivalent size to cellular microRNAs.

resultsThe structural analysis indicated that C124 has low propensity to self-folding. On the other hand, for the first time, we show that C124, in the absence of nucleic acids, multimerizes into empty NLPs when subjected to a pH close to its isoelectric point (pH ≈ 12), indicating that assembly is mainly driven by charge neutralization. Isothermal calorimetry data showed that the assembly of NLPs promoted by nucleic acids is enthalpy driven. Additionally, data obtained from fluorescence correlation spectroscopy show that C124, in nanomolar range, was able to interact and to sequester a large number of short unspecific nucleic acids into NLPs. DISCUSSION: Together, our data showed that the charge neutralization is the major factor for the nucleocapsid-like particles assembly from C-terminal truncated HCV core protein. This finding suggests that HCV core protein may physically interact with unspecific cellular polyanions, which may correspond to microRNAs and mRNAs in a host cell infected by HCV, triggering their confinement into infectious particles.

Indexed as

Capsid assemblyCircular dichroismFluorescence spectroscopyHCV core proteinStructural biology

Identifiers

PMID27867765
PMCPMC5111903
OpenAlexW2555101637

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.