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Query: UMLS:C0019693 (HIV)
 170,526 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Two DNA strand transfer reactions occur during retroviral reverse transcription. The mechanism of the first, minus strand strong-stop DNA, transfer has been studied in vitro with human immunodeficiency virus 1 reverse transcriptase (HIV-1 RT) and a model template-primer system derived from the HIV-1 genome. The results reveal that HIV-1 RT alone can catalyze DNA strand transfer reactions. Two kinetically distinct ribonuclease (RNase) H activities associated with HIV-1 RT are required for removal of RNA fragments annealed to the nascent DNA strand. Examination of the binding of DNA.RNA duplex and single-stranded RNA to HIV-1 RT during strand transfer supports a model where the enzyme accommodates both the acceptor RNA template and the nascent DNA strand before the transfer event is completed. The polymerase activity incorporated additional bases beyond the 5' end of the RNA template, resulting in a base misincorporation upon DNA strand transfer. Such a process occurring in vivo during retroviral homologous recombination could contribute to the hypermutability of the HIV-1 genome.
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PMID:Mechanism of DNA strand transfer reactions catalyzed by HIV-1 reverse transcriptase. 127 6

The crystal structure of the ribonuclease (RNase) H domain of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT) has been determined at a resolution of 2.4 A and refined to a crystallographic R factor of 0.20. The protein folds into a five-stranded mixed beta sheet flanked by an asymmetric distribution of four alpha helices. Two divalent metal cations bind in the active site surrounded by a cluster of four conserved acidic amino acid residues. The overall structure is similar in most respects to the RNase H from Escherichia coli. Structural features characteristic of the retroviral protein suggest how it may interface with the DNA polymerase domain of p66 in the mature RT heterodimer. These features also offer insights into why the isolated RNase H domain is catalytically inactive but when combined in vitro with the isolated p51 domain of RT RNase H activity can be reconstituted. Surprisingly, the peptide bond cleaved by HIV-1 protease near the polymerase-RNase H junction of p66 is completely inaccessible to solvent in the structure reported here. This suggests that the homodimeric p66-p66 precursor of mature RT is asymmetric with one of the two RNase H domains at least partially unfolded.
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PMID:Crystal structure of the ribonuclease H domain of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase. 184 17

Substantial evidence indicates that HIV-1 trans-activation by tat protein is mediated through the TAR RNA element. This RNA forms a stem-loop structure containing a three-nucleotide bulge and a six-nucleotide loop. Previous mutagenic analysis of TAR indicates that the bulge residues and a 4 bp segment of the stem constitute, in part, the tat binding site. However, there appears to be no sequence-specific contribution of the six-base loop. We have employed a ribonuclease protection technique to explore the interaction of tat with single-stranded regions of TAR. The results indicate that tat interacts with both the bulge and loop regions of TAR. Treatment of TAR RNA with RNase A results in cleavage at U23 and U31, located in the bulge and loop regions, respectively. High concentrations (approximately 2 microM) of Escherichia coli derived tat protein, prepared by standard procedures, gave complete protection of TAR RNA from RNase A cleavage. However, under these conditions, truncated TAR derivatives in which no stem-loop structure is expected to form were also protected, indicating nonspecific binding. In order to obtain a tat preparation with enhanced specificity toward TAR RNA, methods were developed for refolding the recombinant protein. This treatment enhanced the affinity of tat for TAR by approximately 30-fold [Kd(apparent) less than 25 nM] and markedly increased its specificity for the TAR. Again, tat protected TAR RNA from RNase A cleavage at both U23 and U31. Protection was also observed with RNase T1 which cleaves TAR RNA at three G residues in the six-base loop.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Refolded HIV-1 tat protein protects both bulge and loop nucleotides in TAR RNA from ribonucleolytic cleavage. 186 81

After infection of the respective target cells with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) viral progeny is produced only after a short temporary delay of some days, depending on cell type. After this period of time a sudden onset of HIV-1 protein synthesis with a dramatic increase in virus release occurs. (2'-5')Oligoriboadenylates [(2'-5')A], capable to activate a latent ribonuclease (RNase L) degrading both mRNA and rRNA, are known mediators involved in the early response of cells to virus infection. Here we show that the (2'-5')A-synthesizing (2'-5')A synthetase, which is inducible by interferon and activated by double-stranded RNA, as well as a (2'-5')A nuclease (2',3'-exoribonuclease) are associated with the nuclear matrix of uninfected and infected H9 cells, also in the absence of interferon. Infection of H9 cells with HIV-1 was found to cause a strong (7.7-fold) enhancement of (2'-5')A synthetase activity and a smaller (2-fold) increase of 2',3'-exoribonuclease activity. Simultaneously the concentration of synthesized (2'-5')A increased 5 to 10 times in isolated nuclei. After incubation for 2 to 3 days both enzyme activities reached a maximum and then dropped below their initial values. Concomitantly a drastic increase in virus production occurred, as judged by reverse transcriptase activity in the culture fluid. These results suggest that the (nuclear matrix-associated) (2'-5')A system might be important during the initial stage of HIV infection, also by destructing matrix-bound viral messengers.
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PMID:Alteration of nuclear (2'-5')oligoriboadenylate synthetase and nuclease activities preceding replication of human immunodeficiency virus in H9 cells. 322 94

Three human cell lines of astrocytic origin were evaluated for expression of a human T-lymphocyte surface glycoprotein, T4, which also serves as a cellular receptor for the human immunodeficiency virus (AIDS virus, HIV). T4 antigen was detected on the cell surface of 2 of these cell lines using monoclonal OKT-4 antibody and flow cytometry. Gene transcripts encoding the T4 molecule were detected by a ribonuclease protection assay in surface T4-positive and -negative cells. Our results suggest that astrocytes may serve as targets for HIV infection in the brain.
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PMID:Expression of the T4 molecule (AIDS virus receptor) by human brain-derived cells. 349 19

The isolated ribonuclease (RNase) H domain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) is enzymatically inactive. The incorporation of the putative substrate binding site of Escherichia coli RNase HI (amino acid residues 76-102, the alpha c-helix and adjacent loop region) into the equivalent position of the RNase H domain of HIV-1 resulted in a highly active hybrid protein dependent on Mn2+. Similar restoration of RNase H activity has been observed when histidine residues are added to either the N- or C-terminus of the HIV-1 RNase H domain. The hybrid HIV-1/E. coli RNase H protein is approximately 10-fold more active than HIV-1 reverse transcriptase and 30-fold more active than the histidine-tagged proteins, indicating that the alpha c-helix and adjacent loop region of E. coli RNase HI is an excellent substrate binding region because of its sequence and/or location. The RNase H hybrid produced the same specific cleavage in the model tRNA(Lys3) primer removal assay as HIV-1 reverse transcriptase, showing that substrate binding and specificity are separable and that the specificity determinants are at least partially, if not totally, contained in the amino acid sequence of the hybrid protein derived from HIV-1 reverse transcriptase.
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PMID:Construction of an enzymatically active ribonuclease H domain of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 reverse transcriptase. 753 Mar 60

The internal structural proteins of retroviruses are proteolytically processed from the Gag polyprotein, which alone is able to assemble into virus-like particles when expressed in cells. All Gag proteins contain domains corresponding to the three structural proteins MA, CA, and NC. We have expressed the CA and NC domains together as a unit in Escherichia coli, both for Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) and for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). We also expressed a similar HIV-1 protein carrying the C-terminal p6 domain. RSV CA-NC, HIV-1 CA-NC, and HIV-1 CA-NC-p6 were purified in native form by classic methods. After adjustment of the pH and salt concentration, each of these proteins was found to assemble at a low level of efficiency into structures that resembled circular sheets and roughly spherical particles. The presence of RNA dramatically increased the efficiency of assembly, and in this case all three proteins formed hollow, cylindrical particles whose lengths were determined by the size of the RNA. The optimal pH at which assembly occurred was 5.5 for the RSV protein and 8.0 for the HIV-1 proteins. The treatment of the RSV CA-NC cylindrical particles with nonionic detergent, with ribonuclease, or with viral protease caused disassembly. These results suggest that RNA plays an important structural role in the virion and that it may initiate and organize the assembly process. The in vitro system described should facilitate the dissection of assembly pathways in retroviruses.
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PMID:Self-assembly in vitro of purified CA-NC proteins from Rous sarcoma virus and human immunodeficiency virus type 1. 766 50

The backbone dynamics of Escherichia coli ribonuclease HI (RNase HI) in the picosecond to nanosecond time scale were characterized by a combination of measurements of 15N-NMR relaxation (T1, T2, and NOE), analyzed by a model-free approach, and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation in water. The MD simulations in water were carried out with long-range Coulomb interactions to avoid the artificial fluctuation caused by the cutoff approximation. The model-free analysis of the 15N-NMR relaxation indicated that RNase HI has a rotational correlation time of 10.9 ns at 27 degrees C. The generalized order parameter (S2) for the internal motions varied from 0.15 to 1.0, with an average value of 0.85, which is much larger than that of the RNase H domain of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (0.78). Large internal motions (small order parameters) were observed in the N-terminal region (Leu2-Lys3), the loop between beta-strands A and B (Cys13-Gly15), the turn between alpha-helix I and beta-strand D (Glu61, His62), the loop between beta-strand D and alpha-helix II (Asp70-Tyr71), the loop between alpha-helices III and IV (Ala93-Lys96), the loop between beta-strand E and alpha-helix V (Gly123-His127), and the C-terminal region (Gln152-Val155). The effective correlation time observed in these regions varied from 0.45 ns (Glu61, Lys96) to 2.2 ns (Leu14). The order parameters calculated from the MD agreed well with those from the NMR experiment, with a few exceptions. The distributions of most of the backbone N-H vectors obtained by MD are approximately consistent with the diffusion-in-a-cone model. These distributions, however, were elliptic, with a long axis perpendicular to the plane defined by the N-H and N-C alpha vectors. Distributions supporting the axial fluctuation model or the jump-between-two-cones model were also observed in the MD simulation.
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PMID:Characterization of the internal motions of Escherichia coli ribonuclease HI by a combination of 15N-NMR relaxation analysis and molecular dynamics simulation: examination of dynamic models. 775 90

2',5'-Oligoadenylates (2-5A) have an essential role in the establishment of the antiviral state of a cell exposed to virus infection. The key enzymes of the 2-5A system are the 2-5A forming 2',5'-oligoadenylate synthetase (2-5OAS), the activity of which depends on the presence of viral or cellular double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), and the 2-5A-activated ribonuclease (RNase L). Basic research in recent years has shown that the 2-5A system is a promising target for anti-HIV chemotherapy, particularly due to its interaction with double-stranded segments within HIV RNA. Two new strategies have been developed which yield a selective antiviral effect of 2-5A against HIV-1 infection: (1) development of 2-5A analogues displaying a dual mode of action (activation of RNase L and inhibition of HIV-1 RT) and (2) intracellular immunization of cells against HIV-1 infection by application of the HIV-1-LTR--2-5OAS hybrid gene. A further strategy is the inhibition of DNA topoisomerase I by longer 2-5A oligomers.
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PMID:The 2-5A system and HIV infection. 791 4

A target RNA/DNA-specific nuclease could be constructed if a specific RNA/DNA binding domain allowing target RNA/DNA recognition was fused to a (deoxy)ribonucleolytic domain allowing target RNA/ DNA cleavage. The design and construction of such a chimeric enzyme could be of value for both basic research involving structure-function relationships and applied research requiring inactivation of harmful RNA/DNA molecules of cellular or pathogenic origin. The feasibility of this designer nuclease approach for inactivating specific RNA/DNA molecules was assessed using human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) RNA as a model. Trans-activator of transcription (Tat) protein is one of the key regulatory proteins encoded by HIV-1. It binds to the trans-activation-responsive (TAR) RNA element located within the 5' non-coding region of HIV-1 RNAs. The TAR RNA binding domain of this protein was fused to the ribonuclease (RNase) H domain of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (RT). RNase H by itself lacks an RNA binding domain. The chimeric Tat-RNase H protein was shown to specifically recognize and cleave HIV-1 TAR RNA in vitro. Cleavage was abolished by mutations in the Tat binding region within the TAR RNA, indicating that it is specific to HIV-1 TAR RNA.
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PMID:Fusion with an RNA binding domain to confer target RNA specificity to an RNase: design and engineering of Tat-RNase H that specifically recognizes and cleaves HIV-1 RNA in vitro. 865 73


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