MUTATIONAL ANALYSIS OF THE HIV-1 VPU PROTEIN

The human immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) encoded Vpu protein fa cilitates the release of budding virions from the surface of infected cells and delays the rate of syncytium formation of the virus. Further more, Vpu induces rapid degradation of nascent CD4 molecules that are retained in the endoplasmic reticulum by the formation of gp160-CD4 co mplexes. Currently, little is known of the precise mechanism(s) by whi ch Vpu function. Whether or not these different events are related rem ain unclear. In this report, we describe our recent structure/function studies on vpu suggesting that the protein may have independent biolo gical activities during the HIV-1 infection.