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Updated: Oct 19, 2025

Determining 3'-Termini and Sequences of Nascent Single-Stranded Viral DNA Molecules during HIV-1 Reverse Transcription in Infected Cells
Published on: January 30, 2019
The HIV-1 capsid and reverse transcription
Christopher Aiken1, Itay Rousso2
1Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA. chris.aiken@vumc.org.
Abstract:
The viral capsid plays a key role in HIV-1 reverse transcription. Recent studies have demonstrated that the small molecule IP6 dramatically enhances reverse transcription in vitro by stabilizing the viral capsid. Reverse transcription results in marked changes in the biophysical properties of the capsid, ultimately resulting in its breakage and disassembly. Here we review the research leading to these advances and describe hypotheses for capsid-dependent HIV-1 reverse transcription and a model for reverse transcription-primed HIV-1 uncoating.
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