Hepatitis E Virus ORF2 Protein Activates the Pro-Apoptotic Gene CHOP and Anti-Apoptotic Heat Shock Proteins

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a non-enveloped plus-strand RNA virus that causes acute hepatitis. The capsid protein open reading frame 2 (ORF2) is known to induce endoplasmic reticulum stress in ORF2 expressing cells. molecular docking analysis suggests that HEV ORF2 interacts with Hsp72. In addition, Hsp72 shows nuclear accumulation in ORF2 expressing cells.These data provide new insight into simultaneously occurring counter-acting effects of HEV ORF2 that may be part of a strategy to prevent host suicide before completion of the viral replication cycle