HIV ‘steals’ proteins from human cells

Researchers at John Hopkins University have identified 25 new proteins that HIV-1 viruses might take from human cells. These could be used as a treatment target.

The scientists studied HIV-1 (the most common and infectious subtype of HIV) to determine which proteins it ‘steals’ from the human cells it invades.  When leaving a cell that they have invaded, HIV particles cover themselves in proteins from the membrane and cytoplasm of the infected cell in order to prevent detection by the immune system.  Some of these proteins might be randomly taken up by the virus, but others may be chosen to aid viral survival.

The team of researchers from John Hopkins compared which human proteins were taken up by the HIV-1 viruses from two different human cell types.  After isolating the viruses from CD4+ T cells (an immune cell), they identified the human proteins that they had incorporated using protein sequencing and bioinformatics tools.  The researchers compared these proteins with human proteins incorporated into HIV particles that had invaded macrophages (another immune cell), found by a previous research group.  Overall there were 279 proteins that the HIV particles had taken from either cell, but only 25 overlapped between cells.

Interestingly, one of these proteins was CD44, one that would allow the virus attach to sites of inflammation, where the immune cells that it infects are drawn. By determining the essential proteins that HIV steals for survival, drugs can be developed that target them.  And these 25 are a good place to start.

Here is David Graham, leader of the study, talking about how HIV-1 steals human proteins: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=WKrP-dkTfJo