Structural biology of HIV

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) genome encodes a total of three stru ctural proteins, two envelope proteins, three enzymes, and six accessory pr oteins. Studies over the past ten years have provided high-resolution three -dimensional structural information for all of the viral enzymes, structura l proteins and envelope proteins, as well as for three of the accessory pro teins. In some cases it has been possible to Solve the structures of the in tact, native proteins, but in most cases structural data were obtained for isolated protein domains, peptidic fragments, or mutants. Peptide complexes with two regulatory RNA fragments and a protein complex with an RNA recogn ition/encapsidation element have also been structurally characterized. This article summarizes the high-resolution structural information that is curr ently available for HIV proteins and reviews current structure-function and structure-biological relationships. (C) 1999 Academic Press.