New Connections: Cell-to-Cell HIV-1 Transmission, Resistance to Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies, and an Envelope Sorting Motif

• Authors: S. Abigail Smith, Emory University; Cynthia Derdeyn, Emory University
• Journal Title: Journal of Virology
• Volume: Volume 91, Number 9
• Publisher: American Society for Microbiology | 2017-05-01, Pages e00149-17-e00149-1
• Type of Work: Article | Final Publisher PDF
• Publisher DOI: http://doi.org/10.1128/JVI.00149-17
• Subjects: Biology, Virology; Health Sciences, Immunology; Biology, Microbiology
• Keywords: Science & Technology; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; Virology; broadly neutralizing antibody; human immunodeficiency virus; viral envelope; virological synapse; HUMAN-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-VIRUS; GP41 CYTOPLASMIC TAIL; VIROLOGICAL SYNAPSES; TRAFFICKING MOTIF; VIRION MATURATION; TYPE-1 INFECTION; MEMBRANE-FUSION; TARGET-CELLS; TYROSINE; ENDOCYTOSIS

Abstract

HIV-1 infection from cell-to-cell may provide an efficient mode of viral spread in vivo and could therefore present a significant challenge for preventative or therapeutic strategies based on broadly neutralizing antibodies. Indeed, Li et al. (H. Li, C. Zony, P. Chen, and B. K. Chen, J. Virol. 91:e02425-16, 2017, https://doi.org/ 10.1128/JVI.02425-16) showed that the potency and magnitude of multiple HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibody classes are decreased during cell-to-cell infection in a context-dependent manner. A functional motif in gp41 appears to contribute to this differential susceptibility by modulating exposure of neutralization epitopes.