Structure and function analysis of the essential 3′X domain of hepatitis C virus

Thermal stability of subdomains SL1′ and SL2′ in wild-type and mutant 3′X domain molecules. (A) Representative UV-monitored thermal denaturation and renaturation curves of wild-type and mutant U₃C/U₅₅C and U₃G domain molecules. The average melting temperatures of subdomains SL1′ and SL2′ are indicated on each graph. (B) Superposition of the first derivative of absorbance as a function of temperature for wild-type, U₃C/U₅₅C and U₃G domain molecules. The color code is the same as that used in A. (C) Average melting temperatures of subdomains SL1′ and SL2′ of wild-type and mutant 3′X domain molecules. Conditions: 10 mM sodium phosphate (pH 6.0), 0.1 mM EDTA, and 0 mM NaCl/MgCl₂.