Reconstitution of hepatitis C virus protease activities in yeast

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) protease genes (NS2/3 and NS3) were expressed in yeast with their natural substrates fused to a ligand-dependent transcriptional activator, the retinoic acid receptor (RARbeta). RARbeta can activate transcription in yeast cells in response to retinoic acids. We hypothesized that cis-cleavage at the NS2-3 or NS3-4A junctions by the appropriate HCV proteases would release RARbeta, thereby activating transcription of a reporter gene. Our results from Western blot analyses and reporter gene activation indicate that the wild-type NS2/3 and NS3 enzymes are catalytically active in yeast cells, whereas mutations in the catalytic domain of NS2(C993V) and NS3(S1165A) lead to inactive enzymes. We conclude that HCV NS2/3 and NS3 protease activities can be reconstituted in yeast.