title: The differential processing of homodimers of reverse transcriptases from human immunodeficiency viruses type 1 and 2 is a consequence of the distinct specificities of the viral proteases.
abstract: Active, recombinant p68 reverse transcriptase (RT) from human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2), with an NH2-terminal extension containing a hexahistidine sequence was isolated from extracts of Escherichia coli by immobilized metal affinity chromatography. Treatment of the purified p68/p68 homodimer of HIV-2 RT with recombinant HIV-2 protease generates stable, active heterodimer (p68/p58) that is resistant to further hydrolysis. Analysis of this p68/p58 HIV-2 RT heterodimer revealed that while one subunit is intact p68, the p58 subunit is COOH-terminally truncated by cleavage, not at Phe440 as is seen in processing of the p66/p66 HIV-1 RT homodimer by HIV-1 protease, but at Met484. The expected COOH-terminal p10 fragment resulting from hydrolysis of p68 at Met484 is not released intact, but undergoes further cleavage at Asn494, Met503, and Tyr532. Processing of p68/p68 HIV-2 RT with the HIV-1 protease led to cleavage of the Phe440-Tyr441 bond, exactly as is seen with p66/p66 HIV-1 RT, to give the analogous p53 subunit. Studies of a peptide substrate modeled after residues 437-444 in HIV-2 RT showed that while the HIV-1 protease was able to cleave the Phe440 bond, this bond was resistant to cleavage by the HIV-2 enzyme. Our findings provide a rationale for the previous observation that the RT heterodimer isolated from HIV-2 lysates is larger than that from HIV-1. We conclude that the p68/p58 HIV-2 RT heterodimer, containing the Met484 truncated p58 subunit, is a biologically relevant form of the enzyme in vivo.
authors.affiliation: Upjohn Laboratories, Kalamazoo, Michigan 49001, USA.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: K B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Rank
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Leone
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Heinrikson
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Bannow
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: D B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Poppe
authors.forename: W G
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Tarpley
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Rothrock
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D016333:HIV Protease / Q000378:metabolism*; D054303:HIV Reverse Transcriptase; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000201:enzymology*; D015498:HIV-2 / Q000201:enzymology*; D006868:Hydrolysis; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010455:Peptides / Q000378:metabolism; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D010455:Peptides; C072416:reverse transcriptase, Human immunodeficiency virus 2; D054303:HIV Reverse Transcriptase; D012194:RNA-Directed DNA Polymerase; D016333:HIV Protease