Glycoprotein C/Gc protein (HTNV)

Hantaviruses (genus Orthohantavirus) are enveloped, negative-sense, single-stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA) viruses. The genomes of hantaviruses are composed of tri-segmented single-stranded, negative sense RNA, designated as small (S), medium (M) and large (L) segments. Each segment encodes nucleocapsid protein (NP), glycoprotein precursor (GPC) and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp), respectively. GPC is posttranslationally cleaved into Gn and Gc. Glycoproteins Gn and Gc are transmembrane proteins and constitute an envelope with a lipid membrane derived from host cells. Gn and Gc are involved in receptor binding, membrane fusion and induction of protective immunity. The two glycoproteins are presumed to be the major elements involved in the induction of neutralizing antibodies during hantavirus infection.