%0 Journal Article 
%A Fernández Ponce, Cecilia Matilde
%A Durán Ruiz, María del Carmen
%A Narbona Sánchez,  Isaac
%A Muñoz Miranda, Juan Pedro
%A Martínez de Arbulo Echevarría, Miguel
%A Serna-Sanz, Antonio
%A Baumann, Christian
%A Litrán Ramos, Rocío
%A Aguado Vidal, Enrique
%A Bloch, Wilhelm
%A García Cózar, Francisco José
%T Ultrastructural Localization and Molecular Associations of HCV Capsid Protein in Jurkat T Cells.
%D 2018
%@ 1664-302X
%U http://hdl.handle.net/10498/30374
%X Hepatitis C virus core protein is a highly basic viral protein that multimerizes with itself to form the viral capsid. When expressed in CD4+ T lymphocytes, it can induce modifications in several essential cellular and biological networks. To shed light on the mechanisms underlying the alterations caused by the viral protein, we have analyzed HCV-core subcellular localization and its associations with host proteins in Jurkat T cells. In order to investigate the intracellular localization of Hepatitis C virus core protein, we have used a lentiviral system to transduce Jurkat T cells and subsequently localize the protein using immunoelectron microscopy techniques. We found that in Jurkat T cells, Hepatitis C virus core protein mostly localizes in the nucleus and specifically in the nucleolus. In addition, we performed pull-down assays combined with Mass Spectrometry Analysis, to identify proteins that associate with Hepatitis C virus core in Jurkat T cells. We found proteins such as NOLC1, PP1γ, ILF3, and C1QBP implicated in localization and/or traffic to the nucleolus. HCV-core associated proteins are implicated in RNA processing and RNA virus infection as well as in functions previously shown to be altered in Hepatitis C virus core expressing CD4+ T cells, such as cell cycle delay, decreased proliferation, and induction of a regulatory phenotype. Thus, in the current work, we show the ultrastructural localization of Hepatitis C virus core and the first profile of HCV core associated proteins in T cells, and we discuss the functions and interconnections of these proteins in molecular networks where relevant biological modifications have been described upon the expression of Hepatitis C virus core protein. Thereby, the current work constitutes a necessary step toward understanding the mechanisms underlying HCV core mediated alterations that had been described in relevant biological processes in CD4+ T cells.
%K Hepatitis C virus
%K immune evasion
%K immune tolerance
%K interactome
%K proteomics
%K regulatory T cells
%K ultrastructure
%~ Universidad de Cádiz