Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 1, 2026

In vitro Uncoating of HIV-1 Cores
Published on: November 8, 2011
Formation of a human immunodeficiency virus type 1 core of optimal stability is crucial for viral replication
Brett M Forshey1, Uta von Schwedler, Wesley I Sundquist
1Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA.
Abstract:
Virions of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) and other lentiviruses contain conical cores consisting of a protein shell composed of the viral capsid protein (CA) surrounding an internal viral ribonucleoprotein complex. Although genetic studies have implicated CA in both early and late stages of the virus replication cycle, the mechanism of core disassembly following penetration of target cells remains undefined. Using quantitative assays for analyzing HIV-1 core stability in vitro, we identified point mutations in CA that either reduce or increase the stability of the HIV-1 core without impairing conical core formation in virions. Alterations in core stability resulted in severely attenuated HIV-1 replication and impaired reverse transcription in target cells with only minimal effects on viral DNA synthesis in permeabilized virions in vitro. We conclude that formation of a viral core of optimal stability is a prerequisite for efficient HIV-1 infection and suggest that disassembly of the HIV-1 core is a regulated step in infection that may be an attractive target for pharmacologic intervention.
More Related Videos
14:23A Restriction Enzyme Based Cloning Method to Assess the In vitro Replication Capacity of HIV-1 Subtype C Gag-MJ4 Chimeric Viruses
Published on: August 31, 2014
11:19Pairwise Growth Competition Assay for Determining the Replication Fitness of Human Immunodeficiency Viruses
Published on: May 4, 2015
Related Concept Videos
Inhibitors of Virion Maturation and Assembly
Viral Mutations
Size and Structure of Viral Genomes
Viral Replication: Lytic Cycle
Retrovirus Life Cycles
Retroviruses