title: Identification of a region in the Pr55gag-polyprotein essential for HIV-1 particle formation.
abstract: The pr55gag polyprotein of HIV-1 plays a critical role in the formation of immature virus particles in the cell and during the budding process. We investigated the influence of amino acid substitutions in the p24CA- region of the gag polyprotein on the viral assembly process. Deletion of the amino acids 341-352 in the carboxy terminal part of the p24CA resulted in a loss of the capacity of the gag polyprotein to form virus-like particles when expressed in eucaryotic cells by recombinant vaccinia virus. In further experiments it turned out that the amino acids 341-346 and 350-352 are important for the ability of the pr55gag to form virus-like particles. Because these stretches are conserved among HIV-1, HIV-2, SIV, and FIV, we conclude that these amino acids form a domain highly important for the assembly of these lentiviruses.
authors.affiliation: Institut für medizinische Mikrobiologie und Hygiene, Universität Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: von Poblotzki
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Niedrig
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wanner
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Modrow
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D002460:Cell Line; D003062:Codon / Q000235:genetics; D015683:Gene Products, gag / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D015498:HIV-2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015183:Restriction Mapping; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014616:Vaccinia virus / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D003062:Codon; D015683:Gene Products, gag; D011498:Protein Precursors; C059767:p55 gag precursor protein, Human immunodeficiency virus 1