P7

The p7 protein is a small, hydrophobic transmembrane protein that participates in viral assembly and release. The p7 protein can oligomerize as hexamers to form ion channels in host cell membranes—based on this property, p7 is categorized in the viroporin family of proteins. Although p7 has a structural role inside hepatocytes, it is not part of the viral particle. During assembly, the p7 proteins work in concert with other viral proteins at the endoplasmic reticulum to unload core proteins from lipid droplets for capsid assembly and membrane envelopment. The p7 channel activity can dissipate the low pH of the cellular secretory compartment thus protecting the viral glycoprotein from inactivation.