Scientists discover new molecular mechanisms by which HIV is protected from host immune systems
February 05 20:07:41, 2024
Recently, a research report published in the international magazine eLife, scientists from Australia and the United States found that HIV can intercept a small molecule in the host cell to protect itself from Destroyed by the host's immune system, related research may help researchers identify new antiviral therapy targets to develop new strategies to combat HIV infection, and researchers hope to develop a new way to measure new drugs against viral coats. The targeting efficiency of the shell.
HIV can form a viral capsid, and the capsid protects the genetic material of the virus from host defense mechanisms. When the virus enters the host cell, it can enter the nucleus to cause infection; in this study, researchers developed A novel single-molecule microscopy that uses researchers to find that HIV can specifically bind to the small molecule of the host cell, inositol hexose phosphate, to enhance the function of the viral capsid. Inadvertently providing a protective material for viral infection, which causes the virus to enter the host cell nucleus to release virions.
Researcher Professor Till Bocking said that once the virus leaves, the HIV capsid will fall apart in a matter of minutes, and our strategy is to clarify how the original capsid of the virus breaks down in real time without leaving the virus membrane. The researchers engineered the virus to carry fluorescent labels so that fluorescence microscopy can be used to monitor changes in viral capsids; then researchers can observe the effects of different molecules on viral capsids. At the same time, it is possible to accurately find out when the viral capsid begins to "collapse".
Inside the cell, the viral capsid needs to become more stable, because the process of the virus triggering the infection takes hours, so the researchers want to know what mechanism in the cell can maintain the virus capsid stable, and finally they found A special molecule, inositol hexose phosphate, which is high in mammalian cells, allows the viral capsid to become very strong, which can stabilize it for up to 10-20 hours. This is like a switch. When you combine this molecule, it will stabilize the shell, and when the molecule is released, the shell will open.
Researcher Dr. Leo James said that scientists have now conducted in-depth research on the capsid of HIV, but researchers still don't know how HIV capsids can be taken off comfortably while maintaining stability. Shell, and this issue has always been a major issue for scientists in the field of HIV research. Currently approved HIV therapies are able to target specific enzymes at different stages of the viral life cycle, but none of the therapies directly target HIV capsids, so later researchers need to go deeper. Research has been developed to develop alternative new drugs to improve current HIV therapies, while also avoiding the toxic side effects of patients as much as possible.