Effect of mutations in the V3 loop of HIV-1 gp120 on infectivity and susceptibility to proteolytic cleavage. Academic Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • It has been suggested that the V3 domain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) isolates has to interact with a cell-surface-associated or endosomal proteinase during virus entry into susceptible cells. To investigate this hypothesis, we examined the effect of several mutations in the V3 loop on its susceptibility to proteolytic cleavage by thrombin and cathepsin E and compared it with the effect of these mutations on viral infectivity. The data obtained indicate that, if an interaction between the V3 loop and a proteinase is indeed crucial for viral entry, the substrate requirements for such a proteinase(s) would have to be very complex. In particular, it seems unlikely that a single enzyme with a unique specificity would be able to interact with all of the different HIV-1 and HIV-2/SIV strains isolated so far. Therefore, one would have to postulate the involvement of several cellular proteinases, or proteases with multiple specificities, in V3-based viral tropism.

publication date

  • February 1, 1993

Research

keywords

  • HIV Envelope Protein gp120
  • HIV-1

Identity

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 0027481774

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1089/aid.1993.9.159

PubMed ID

  • 8457383

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 9

issue

  • 2