The amino acid sequence of the polyprotein deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the Japanese hepatitis C virus genome (N. Kato et al. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87, 9524-9528) indicated that this virus is a member of a new class of positive-stranded RNA viruses. Several domains of this polyprotein also showed weak homology with those of flaviviruses and pestiviruses including the chymotrypsin-like serine proteinase, NTPase and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase.