Project description:The HIV-1 genome gains access to the inside of a cell via the mechanism of the viral spike protein Env, which undergoes a series of major conformational rearrangements after binding target receptors that ultimately drive virus-cell membrane fusion. Env is expressed as a heterogenous ensemble of conformations, which can inappropriately misdirect the host immune response towards the production of non-protective, strain-specific antibodies. Potent, broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) frequently recognize a ‘closed’ Env conformation, and therefore Env has undergone significant engineering to stabilize the closed state for vaccine incorporation. Previously, we used deep mutational scanning of Env from a prototypical tier 1 clade B strain (BaL) to characterize the sequence-activity landscape for binding to PG16, a bnAb that preferentially binds the closed state. Mutations were identified that increased expression of closed Env and reduced conformational heterogeneity, but these mutations were only partially transferable to Env sequences from other strains. To generate an expanded set of mutations that may be broadly applicable to diverse HIV-1 strains, we present here the deep mutational scanning of Env from the tier 2 clade C strain DU422 for interactions with CD4 and PG16. Residues across the trimerization domain and trimer interface have low mutational tolerance for maintaining PG16 recognition. New mutations are identified that enhance presentation of the closed Env conformation, and these are applied to Env sequences spanning multiple clades and tiers.
Project description:We report deep mutational scanning data for the Env protein's LLP-2 domain in the NL4-3 strain HIV-1 Env. Processed Data repersents counts for each amino acid pre and post spread
Project description:HIV-1 infection begins with binding of the viral envelope glycoprotein Env to the host receptor CD4, triggering a series of conformational changes that lead to fusion of the virus and cell membranes. Env, a trimer of gp120 and gp41 subunits, occupies a ‘closed’ conformation with contacts between gp120 subunits at the apex, and transitions through an ‘open’ conformation with the gp120 subunits spread apart following CD4 binding. Using deep mutational scanning, sequence-fitness landscapes were mapped for full-length Env from the clade B BaL strain interacting with CD4, and broadly neutralizing antibodies VRC01 and PG16, which preferentially bind closed Env. Contacting residues are conserved for CD4 binding, and glycosylation at N262 is critical for accessing the high-affinity CD4-bound state. By comparison, VRC01 binding is resistant to most single amino acid substitutions, an ideal quality in a broadly neutralizing antibody. Also in contrast to CD4 interaction, Env interfacial residues are under tight selection for PG16 binding to maintain a closed conformation. Screening for mutations that enhanced PG16 binding, we identified several important sites, in particular neutralization of the electropositive apical cavity that we hypothesize promotes trimer opening by electrostatic repulsion. Mutations were combined to generate Quaternary Epitope Stabilized (QES) mutants with enhanced presentation of the PG16 epitope, and the mutations were partially transferable to other HIV-1 strains. These mutational analyses offer insight into Env conformational stabilization that may assist immunogen design.
Project description:Buffering of deleterious mutations by molecular chaperones and degradation of aberrant proteins by quality control systems are both major factors that can impact the mutational landscape available to a client protein. The impacts of the proteostasis network on protein evolution are not limited to just endogenous clients, but can also shape the mutational landscapes accessible to rapidly evolving viral proteins. Here, we test the hypothesis that the composition of the host cell’s endoplasmic reticulum (ER) proteostasis network shapes the evolution of RNA viruses by focusing on human immunodeficiency virus-1 envelope (Env), a membrane glycoprotein that folds and matures in the host cell’s secretory pathway. We apply chemical genetic methods to activate the IRE1-XBP1s and/or the ATF6 transcriptional arms of the unfolded protein response in a stress-independent manner. We then quantitatively assess the impact of the resulting altered host cell ER proteostasis environments on the relative enrichment of all Env single amino acid substitutions using deep mutational scanning. We find that upregulation of host ER proteostasis factors globally reduces the mutational tolerance of HIV-1 Env, particularly upon induction of the IRE1-XBP1s transcriptional arm of the UPR. The effects of ATF6 activation are less global, but still significant at particular Env sites. The impact of the XBP1s-induced ER proteostasis environment is disparate for diverse structural elements of Env. Conserved, functionally important regions generally exhibit the largest decreases in mutational tolerance upon XBP1s activation. In contrast, specific regions of Env, including regions targeted by broadly neutralizing antibodies, display greatly enhanced mutational tolerance when XBP1s is activated. Altogether, these data reveal a new set of host factors that specifically shape the mutational space accessible to HIV Env and, more generally, provide compelling evidence that UPR-regulated proteostasis mechanisms play critical roles in membrane protein evolution.
Project description:The HIV-1 surface glycoprotein Env binds target receptors to mediate fusion of the viral and host cell membranes during infection. Env is incorporated with very low density into virions, and in some cell types, regions within the long cytosolic C-terminal tail may mediate direct or indirect associations with Gag during virus assembly and budding. Here, the mutational landscape is determined across the transmembrane and proximal cytosolic domains of Env (001428 isolate from clade C) interacting with the MA domain of Gag at cellular membranes. No evidence is found in a derivative line of HEK293 cells for specific motifs that mediate Env/MA associations.
Project description:HIV-1 usually utilize CCR5 as the co-receptor and rarely switches to CXCR4-tropic until late stage of infection. CCR5+CD4+ T cells are the major virus-producing cells in patients as well as SIV-infected non-human primates. The differentiation of CCR5+CD4+ T cells is associated with the availability of IL-15, which increases during acute HIV-1 infection. Here, we report that CCR5 is expressed by CD4+ T cells exhibiting effector or effector memory phenotype with high expression levels of the IL-2/IL-15 receptor common beta and gamma chains. IL-15 but not IL-7 improves the survival of CCR5+CD4+ T cells, drives their expansion, and facilitates HIV-1 infection in vitro and in humanized mice. Our study suggests that IL-15 plays confounding roles in HIV-1 infection, and future studies on the IL-15-based boosting of anti-HIV-1 immunity should carefully exam the potential effects on the expansion of HIV-1 reservoirs in CCR5+CD4+ T cells.
Project description:Results from the Step trial in humans and studies in non-human primates highlighted a role for heightened activated CD4 T cell response in promoting HIV/SIV acquisition. However, the contribution of vaccine-specific CD4 T cell response in influencing protection is not known. Here, using the macaque model, we show that vaccine-induced Th1-biased CCR5+ CD4 T cell response in blood and mucosal tissue above a certain thresh¬old is detrimental for vaccine-mediated protection against pathogenic mucosal SIV infections.
Project description:The high mutation rate of HIV is linked to the generation of viruses expressing proteins with altered function whose impact on disease progression is unknown. We investigated the effects of HIV-1 viruses lacking Env, Vpr and Nef on CD4+ T cell gene expression using high-density DNA microarray analysis and functional assays. Experiment Overall Design: Human activated CD4+ T-lymphocytes from three independent donors were infected with HIV-1 viruses that lack Env and Nef (pNL4-3.eGFP.R+E- or HIVD2GFP) or Env, Vpr and Nef. (pNL4-3.eGFP.R-E- or HIVD3GFP) were pseudotyped with VSVG envelope. As a control, CD4+ T-lymphocytes were infected with VSVG-pseudotyped eGFP. CD4+ T-cells were sorted 48 hours after infection using GFP as a marker of infectivity. RNA was isolated 10 hours after sorting, labeled, and prepared for microarray analysis.
Project description:Broadly HIV-1 neutralizing VRC01-class antibodies target the CD4-binding site of Env. They are derived from VH1-2*02 antibody heavy chains paired with rare light chains expressing five amino acid long CDRL3s. They have been isolated from infected subjects but have not yet been elicited by immunization. Env-derived immunogens capable of binding the germline forms of VRC01 B cell receptors on naïve B cells have been designed and evaluated in knock-in mice. However, the elicited antibodies cannot bypass glycans present on the conserved position N276 of Env, which restricts access to the CD4-binding site. Efforts to guide the appropriate maturation of these antibodies by sequential immunization have not yet been successful. Here, we report on a two-step immunization scheme that led to the maturation of VRC01-like antibodies capable of accommodating the N276 glycan and displaying autologous tier 2 neutralizing activities. Our results are relevant to clinical trials aiming to elicit VRC01 antibodies.