Patent ID: 8021835

Claim:
A method of screening for an inhibitor of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection, said method comprising screening a library for a compound which prevents or mitigates binding of any one of: i) a cell expressing HCV envelope proteins E1 and E2, ii) an HCV pseudotyped retroviral particle comprising an HCV E1 protein and an HCV E2 protein, iii) an HCV cell culture particle, iv) an ex vivo HCV cell culture particle, or v) a Hepatitis C Virus with a Claudin-1 protein, conservative amino acid substitutions thereof, a Claudin-1/Claudin-7 chimera comprising a Claudin-1 extracellular loop 1, or a Claudin-7 protein wherein residues corresponding to residues 32 and 48 of a Claudin-1 protein as shown in SEQ ID NO: 1 are respectively substituted in said Claudin-7 protein with isoleucine and glutamic acid.