Grant: Operating Grant - PA: HIV/AIDS Research Initiative - Biomedical/Clinical Stream

Animal retroviruses are formed by budding through the limiting membranes of producer cells, a process during which the newly formed virions become coated with a lipid bilayer derived from the host cell membrane. The low specificity of the process governing glycoprotein incorporation into retroviruses is most likely responsible for the incorporation of a vast array of cell-derived proteins. Previous studies have shown the functional ability of some virus-anchored host cell membrane constituents. Given that virus-associated host proteins can influence several aspects of HIV-1 biology, additional experiments are warranted to shed light on this intriguing phenomenon. The primary goal of the current research project is to gain novel insights into the role played by some virally acquired host cell membrane molecules in the complex interactions occurring between HIV-1 and its cell targets. A more complete understanding of the contribution of virus-associated host proteins to the HIV-1 life cycle is crucial because it might lead to the development of new drugs, the design of therapeutic agents that can deplete the reservoir of archived viruses in latently infected cells, the use of alternative approaches for the treatment of HIV-1 infection and/or the design of an efficient vaccine strategy.