Figure 1.

Genomic organization and replicative mechanism of hepatitis E virus. (a) Map of HEV genome including domains encoded by ORFs 1–3. (b) After viral entry and uncoating, ORF1 is translated by host ribosomes into a polyprotein that includes the RdRp. (c) The RdRp transcribes a (−)-sense full-length genome from the (+)-sense strand. (d) The (−)-sense genome is a template for transcription of two (+)-sense RNAs: a full-length transcript and a subgenomic (sg) RNA encoding ORFs 2 and 3. The latter is transcribed from the subgenomic promoter (SgP). (e) The capsid protein and HEV viroporin are translated from the subgenomic RNA.