Coarse-grained simulation reveals key features of HIV-1 capsid self-assembly.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 27174390.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/ncomms11568 and PMC identifier 4869257.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The maturation of HIV-1 viral particles is essential for viral infectivity. During maturation, many copies of the capsid protein (CA) self-assemble into a capsid shell to enclose the viral RNA. The mechanistic details of the initiation and early stages of capsid assembly remain to be delineated. We present coarse-grained simulations of capsid assembly under various conditions, considering not only capsid lattice self-assembly but also the potential disassembly of capsid upon delivery to the cytoplasm of a target cell. The effects of CA concentration, molecular crowding, and the conformational variability of CA are described, with results indicating that capsid nucleation and growth is a multi-stage process requiring well-defined metastable intermediates. Generation of the mature capsid lattice is sensitive to local conditions, with relatively subtle changes in CA concentration and molecular crowding influencing self-assembly and the ensemble of structural morphologies.
Medical subject headings
- Capsid
- Capsid Proteins
- HIV-1
- Molecular Dynamics Simulation
- Virus Assembly