Hepatitis C virus (HCV) nonstructural protein 3 (NS3) is a known RNA helicase, an enzyme that unwinds RNA . DNA and RNA . RNA duplexes. We have now deciphered the biochemical characteristics of the HCV NS3 DNA helicase activity. Recombinant NS3 was expressed in Escherichia coli, purified to near homogeneity, and tested for DNA helicase activity. The optimal conditions for DNA unwinding (for example, the preferred pH and magnesium ion concentration) were similar to those for RNA unwinding. The DNA helicase activity was very sensitive to potassium ion concentration, while DNA binding and DNA-stimulated ATPase activities were not. The direction of DNA unwinding was determined to be 3' to 5'. All four ribonucleoside triphosphates (ATP, GTP, CTP, UTP) and deoxynucleoside triphosphates (dATP, dGTP, dCTP, dTTP) could serve as energy sources, but GTP and dGTP were less efficient than the others. When nucleotide analog inhibitors were added to the DNA helicase reaction, the overall order of inhibitory capacity was : adenosine 5'-0-(3-thiotriphosphate) > adenylyl-imidodiphosphate and adenylyl-(b,y-methy1ene)-diphosphate > AMP. DNA helicase activity was inhibited strongly by ssDNA and ssRNA, but was little affected by dsDNA. The ATPase activity was stimulated greatly by ssDNA and ssRNA, but not by dsDNA. The NS3 protein could unwind up to 500 base pairs of duplex DNA.The possible multifunctional nature of the NS3 protein is discussed and compared with that of Simian virus 40 large T antigen.Keywords: non-structural protein 3 ; hepatitis C virus ; DNA helicase; RNA helicase ; processivity.Hepatitis C virus (HCV) was first isolated in 1989 and is the major etiologic agent of transfusion non-A, non-B hepatitis [ 11. HCV is an enveloped virus that contains a positive-strand RNA genome of about 9400 nucleotides. The RNA genome of HCV contains a single open reading frame that encodes a viral polyprotein of about 3010 amino acids. This polyprotein is processed by viral and host proteases into the C, El, E2, NS2, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, NSSA, and NSSB proteins [2-51. The amino-terminal domain of the NS3 protein contains a trypsin-like serine proteinase activity, which cleaves the NS3-NS4A, NS4A-NS4B, NS4B-NSSA, and NSSA-NSSB protein junctions of the HCV polyprotein [6].HCV belongs to the positive-strand RNA virus family Flaviviridae. The other two members of this family are flavivirus and pestivirus 171. Comparative sequence analyses of these three viruses reveal distinct similarities [8]. In particular, the HCV NS3 protein and its homologs from the other Flaviviridae family members contain the conserved sequence motifs of RNA helicases and NTPases [9-111. The NTPase activities of NS3 and its homologous proteins display several similar characteristics, for example, optimal pH, optimal magnesium concentration, sensitivity to monovalent cations, and relaxed substrate specificity (they can utilize both NTPs and dNTPs) [12, 131.The carboxyl-terminal domain of the HCV NS3 protein shares sequence similarity with the DEAD box family of RNA Kan...