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© The Author(s) 2016. The hepatitis C virus (HCV) infects approximately 3% of the world population or more than 185 million people worldwide. Each year, an estimated 350000-500000 deaths occur worldwide due to HCV-associated diseases including cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. HCV is the most common indication for liver transplantation in patients with cirrhosis worldwide. HCV is an enveloped RNA virus classified in the genus Hepacivirus in the Flaviviridae family. The HCV viral life cycle in a cell can be divided into six phases: (1) binding and internalization; (2) cytoplasmic release and uncoating; (3) viral polyprotein translation and processing; (4) RNA genome replication; (5) encapsidation (packaging) and assembly; and (6) virus morphogenesis (maturation) and secretion. Many host factors are involved in the HCV life cycle. Chaperones are an important group of host cytoprotective molecules that coordinate numerous cellular processes including protein folding, multimeric protein assembly, protein trafficking, and protein degradation. All phases of the viral life cycle require chaperone activity and the interaction of viral proteins with chaperones. This review will present our current knowledge and understanding of the role of chaperones in the HCV life cycle. Analysis of chaperones in HCV infection will provide further insights into viral/host interactions and potential therapeutic targets for both HCV and other viruses.

Background: Oxidative stress is implicated in the pathogenesis of alcohol-induced liver injury. This is, in part, mediated by the cytochrome P450 CYP2E1 which contributes to reactive oxygen species...

We have previously identified HSC70 in complex with viral NS5A along with other heat shock proteins. HSC70 has been reported to modulate HCV infectivity. Here, we further analyze the NS5A/HSC70 interaction biochemically and investigate the role of HSC70 in viral life cycle. We demonstrate that HSC70 knockdown significantly affects virus production with no cytotoxicity. We observed that HSC70 knockdown did not affect viral RNA replication and protein production. In fact, we found a slight, but statistically significant increase in viral RNA and protein levels likely caused by compensatory upregulation of HSP70, which we have previously shown to be required for viral protein production. NS5A-augmented IRES-mediated translation was also not inhibited by HSC70 knockdown and, rather, slightly increased. In contrast, we discovered that intracellular infectious virion assembly was significantly impaired by HSC70 knockdown. We also discovered that both HSC70 nucleotide binding and substrate binding domains direct...