Séminaire CIRI (19.09.2023) : Dr. Michael EMERMAN

Dr. Michael EMERMAN,Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, WA USA: " The origins of HIV-1 through the lens of host-virus interactions "

Abstract: Humans encode seven APOBEC3 (A3) genes named A3A to A3H of which A3D, A3F, A3G, A3H are all capable of inhibiting retroviruses by hypermutation. Lentiviruses such as HIV-1 have evolved to avoid the inhibition posed by A3 proteins by targeting them via a viral encoded Vif (Viral infectivity factor) protein. The A3 proteins have evolved under positive selection, and diversification of A3 allows host escape from Vif whereas adaptations in Vif enable cross-species transmission of primate lentiviruses. Resolution of the cryoEM structure of human A3G bound to HIV-1 Vif in complex with other host proteins highlights the Vif-A3G molecular arms race interface as well as a role for RNA as a molecular glue in this complex.  The Vif-A3G interactions inform the origins of HIV-1 through adaptations through primate hosts.