The cellular kinase binding motifs (PxxP and RR) in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Nef protein are dispensable for producer-cell-dependent enhancement of viral entry.
We have recently demonstrated that human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) Nef is required for enhancing viral infectivity by increasing the efficiency of viral entry in a producer-cell-dependent manner, suggesting the possible involvement of a cellular factor(s) in the enhancement of viral entry. Moreover, it has been reported that a proline-rich (PxxP) motif and an Arg-Arg (RR) motif in HIV-1 Nef bind to the SH3 domain of the Src-family tyrosine kinase Hck and to a serine/threonine kinase, respectively. To address whether these cellular kinase binding motifs, PxxP and RR, could be involved in virus producer-cell-dependent enhancement of viral entry, we constructed two nef mutant proviral clones in which these motifs were mutated. The results show that the HIV-1 Nef PxxP motif, which significantly influenced viral infectivity, and the RR motif, which modestly affected viral infectivity, were both dispensable for enhanced viral entry, thus suggesting that another interaction of Nef with a cellular factor(s) is involved in the efficiency of viral entry.
D000409:Alanine / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001120:Arginine / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D001665:Binding Sites; D002461:Cell Line, Transformed; D015693:Gene Products, nef / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D006367:HeLa Cells; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016297:Mutagenesis, Site-Directed; D011392:Proline / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D011494:Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D011505:Protein-Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D051572:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-hck; D054311:nef Gene Products, Human Immunodeficiency Virus