Fusion peptide of HIV-1 as a site of vulnerability to neutralizing antibody

• Autores: Rui Kong, Kai Xu, Tongqing Zhou, Priyamvada Acharya
• Localización: Science, ISSN 0036-8075, Vol. 352, Nº 6287, 2016, págs. 829-833
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The HIV-1 fusion peptide, comprising 15 to 20 hydrophobic residues at the N terminus of the Env-gp41 subunit, is a critical component of the virus-cell entry machinery. Here, we report the identification of a neutralizing antibody, N123-VRC34.01, which targets the fusion peptide and blocks viral entry by inhibiting conformational changes in gp120 and gp41 subunits of Env required for entry. Crystal structures of N123-VRC34.01 liganded to the fusion peptide, and to the full Env trimer, revealed an epitope consisting of the N-terminal eight residues of the gp41 fusion peptide and glycan N88 of gp120, and molecular dynamics showed that the N-terminal portion of the fusion peptide can be solvent-exposed. These results reveal the fusion peptide to be a neutralizing antibody epitope and thus a target for vaccine design.