Apolipoprotein E interacts with hepatitis C virus nonstructural protein 5A and determines assembly of infectious particles.

Unlabelled: Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a major cause of liver disease worldwide. Restriction of HCV infection to human hepatocytes suggests that liver-specific host factors play a role in the viral life cycle. Using a yeast-two-hybrid system, we identified apolipoprotein E (apoE) as a liver-derived host factor specifically interacting with HCV nonstructural protein 5A (NS5A) but not with other viral proteins.

Distinct regions of RPB11 are required for heterodimerization with RPB3 in human and yeast RNA polymerase II.

In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, RNA polymerase II assembly is probably initiated by the formation of the RPB3-RPB11 heterodimer. RPB3 is encoded by a single copy gene in the yeast, mouse and human genomes. The RPB11 gene is also unique in yeast and mouse, but in humans a gene family has been identified that potentially encodes several RPB11 proteins differing mainly in their C-terminal regions.