One for all? A viral protein supplants the mRNA cap-binding complex

Modulation of the host cell’s translational machinery is a crucial part of viral infection strategies.Well-characterised mechanisms that aid viruses in manipulating translational activity include, for example, internal ribosomal entry sites, which allow viral RNA translation in the absence of some or many of the canonical host translation factors. New research shows that the nucleocapsid protein from a species of Hantavirus can replace several host cell translation factors in in vitro translation reactions, suggesting that hantaviruses may have evolved a novel strategy for modulating host cell translation in the form of a multifunctional translation factor.