title: Generation of human TRIM5alpha mutants with high HIV-1 restriction activity.
abstract: Rhesus macaque tripartite motif (TRIM)5alpha potently inhibits early stages of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1 replication, while the human orthologue has little effect on this virus. We used PCR-based random mutagenesis to construct a large library of human TRIM5alpha variants containing mutations in the PRYSPRY domain. We then applied a functional screen to isolate human cells made resistant to HIV-1 infection by the expression of a mutated TRIM5alpha. This protocol led to the characterization of a human TRIM5alpha variant containing a mutation at arginine 335 as conferring resistance to HIV-1 infection. The level of protection stemming from expression of this mutant was comparable to that of previously described mutations at position 332. R332/R335 double mutants decreased permissiveness to HIV-1 and to other lentiviruses by 20- to 50-fold in TE671 fibroblasts and in the T-cell line SUP-T1, and prevented HIV-1 spreading infection as efficiently as the rhesus macaque TRIM5alpha orthologue did. The finding that only two substitutions in human TRIM5alpha can confer resistance to HIV-1 at levels as high as one of the most potent natural orthologues of TRIM5alpha removes a roadblock toward the use of this restriction factor in human gene therapy applications.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Retrovirology, University of Québec, Trois-Rivières, Canada.
authors.forename: Q T
authors.initials: QT
authors.lastname: Pham
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bouchard
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Grütter
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Berthoux
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000090103:Antiviral Restriction Factors; D001120:Arginine; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D002460:Cell Line; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000235:genetics*; D016296:Mutagenesis; D009154:Mutation; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D011506:Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000821:virology; D000070584:Tripartite Motif Proteins; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
chemical_list: D000090103:Antiviral Restriction Factors; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D000070584:Tripartite Motif Proteins; D001120:Arginine; C477346:TRIM5 protein, human; C482587:TRIM5(alpha) protein, rhesus monkey; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases