Cell-dependent gag mutants of HIV-1 are crucially defective at the stage of uncoating/reverse transcription in non-permissive cells

We have previously shown that some of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)gag matrix (MA), capsid (CA), and nucleocapsid (NC) mutants displ ay host-cell-dependent replication potential, and that they are defective a t the early phase of the virus replication cycle in non-permissive cells. T o determine the defective replication stage of the cell-dependent mutants p recisely, the processes of virus entry into cells and virus DNA synthesis w ere monitored by the highly sensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and polymerase chain reaction amplification analysis. The results obtained ind icated that all the cell-dependent MA, CA and NC mutants are defective ar t he stage of uncoating/reverse transcription, and that a cellular factor(s) is involved in this process. (C) 2000 Editions scientifiques et medicales E lsevier SAS.