Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Nef protein inhibits activation pathways in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and T-cell lines

The solution structure of HIV-1 Nef reveals an unexpected fold and permits delineation of the binding surface for the SH3 domain of Hck tyrosine protein kinase

The solution structure of HIV-1 Nef has been solved by multidimensional heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy. The construct employed to circumvent problems associated with aggregation was a double-deletion mutant (delta2-39, delta159-173) in which conformationally disordered regions of the protein at the N terminus and in a long solvent-exposed flexible loop were removed, without affecting the properties or structural integrity of the remainder of the protein. Despite the absence of any sequence similarity, the overall fold of Nef is reminiscent of that of the family of winged helix-turn-helix DNA binding proteins. The binding surface of Nef for the SH3 domain of Hck tyrosine protein kinase has been mapped and reveals a non-contiguous (in terms of amino-acid sequence) interaction surface. This unique feature may suggest possible avenues for drug design aimed at inhibiting the interaction between Nef and SH3 domains.

The HIV-1 nef protein interferes with phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase activation 1

nef is a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) gene encoding a 27-kDa myristoylated protein with structural features of a signal transducing molecule, but whose functions are largely unknown. We studied the interactions of Nef with the signal transduction pathways triggered by the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) receptor. The association of phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase with the activated receptor was severely impaired by nef expression. Conversely, PDGF-induced receptor tyrosine phosphorylation, binding to phospholipase C-gamma and to Ras-GAP were not modified. Microtubule-associated protein kinase activation and intracellular calcium influx in response to PDGF were either unaffected or only slightly enhanced. Nef significantly reduced the proliferative response to the growth factor, while the chemotactic response was unchanged. These data show that Nef affects selectively the PI 3-kinase signaling pathway and suggest that this interference results in some of the HIV adverse effects on host cell functions.

Physical and functional interaction of Nef with Lck. HIV-1 Nef-induced T-cell signaling defects

The nef gene is unique to the primate lentiviruses and encodes a cytoplasmic membrane-associated protein that affects T-cell signaling and is essential for both maintenance of a high virus load in vivo and for disease progression. Here we investigated the perturbation of cell signaling by Nef in T-cells and found that Nef interacts with the T-cell restricted Lek tyrosine kinase both in vitro and in vivo. The molecular basis for this interaction was analyzed. We show that cell-derived Nef is precipitated in a synergistic manner by the recombinant Src homology 2 (SH2) and SH3 domains from Lck. A functional proline-rich motif and the tyrosine phosphorylation of Nef were evidenced as likely participants in this interaction. The precipitation of Nef by the Lck recombinant proteins was specific, since neither Fyn, Csk, p85 phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase nor phospholipase Cgamma SH2 domains coprecipitated Nef from T-cells. Finally, depressed Lck kinase activity resulted from the presence of Nef, both in vitro and in intact cells, and nef expression resulted in impairment of both proximal and distal Lck-mediated signaling events. These results provide a molecular basis for the Nef-induced T-cell signaling defect and its role in AIDS pathogenesis.

Interleukin-2 and human immunodeficiency virus infection: pathogenic mechanisms and potential for immunologic enhancement

A hallmark of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is the progressive loss of CD4+ T lymphocytes; however, qualitative defects in immune responses occur prior to the precipitous drop CD4+ T cell numbers. One of the first immunologic defects to be described in HIV-infected individuals is a deficiency in interleukin (IL)-2 production. The addition of IL-2 in vitro to cultures of mononuclear cells from HIV-infected individuals partially or completely restored certain defective cellular immune responses. However, production of or addition of IL-2 has also been associated with increased viral replication in infected T cells. These observations underscore the pernicious correlation between immune activation and HIV replication. However, recent in vitro and in vivo studies have provided promising preliminary results suggesting that, at least at certain stages of disease, the benefits of IL-2 mediated immune enhancement may outweigh or override the inductive effects of this cytokine on HIV production.

Functional characterization of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 nef genes in patients with divergent rates of disease progression

We have studied the sequence and function of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) nef genes from nine patients with highly divergent rates of disease progression enrolled in a longitudinal study of HIV disease. Over an average of 7.8 years of follow-up, three patients had net positive changes in CD4+ T-cell counts, three patients had net negative changes in CD4+ T cells but did not develop AIDS, and three patients progressed to AIDS. The nef gene from each of these patients was amplified and cloned, and the sequence of 8 to 10 clones was determined. Only 2 of 88 (2.3%) nef genes recovered from these nine patients were grossly defective. Moreover, there was no relationship between the phylogeny of nef sequences and the corresponding rates of disease progression from these patients. Representative nef genes from all nine patients were tested for their abilities to downregulate cell surface CD4 in a transient-transfection assay. There was no correlation found between the functions of the nef genes from these patients and their corresponding rates of disease progression. We conclude that the nef gene is not a common mediator of the rate of HIV disease progression in natural infection.