HIV Envelope Trimer

HIV

Structures  of the HIV Envelope trimer, a key AIDS molecule, modelled onto a viral membrane. These are the first atomic-­level structures of the tripartite HIV molecule — long considered one of the most difficult targets in structural biology and of great value for medical science. New data provide the most detailed picture yet of the AIDS-causing virus’s complex Envelope structure, including sites that future vaccines will try to mimic to elicit a protective human immune response. The structures were solved independently by x-­ray crystallography and cryo-­electron microscopy.

The  image  was  rendered  by  Graham  Johnson  (UCSF).
Work  that  led  to  the  3D  map  was  published  in:

  • Julien JP, Cupo A, Sok D, Stanfield RL, Lyumkis D, Deller MC, Klasse PJ, Burton DR, Sanders RW, Moore JP, Ward AB, Wilson IA. Crystal structure of a soluble cleaved HIV-1 envelope trimer. Science. 2013;342(6165):1477-83. PubMed
  • Lyumkis D, Julien JP, de Val N, Cupo A, Potter CS, Klasse PJ, Burton DR, Sanders RW, Moore JP, Carragher B, Wilson IA, Ward AB. Cryo-EM structure of a fully glycosylated soluble cleaved HIV-1 envelope trimer. Science. 2013;342(6165):1484-90. PubMed