Protein discovery may open new topics
Researchers at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, MA, have developed for the first time a high-resolution picture of the protein fragment that enables HIV to invade human cells. The images showed a six-helix bundle punctuated by deep cavities.
"Until we saw the images, we didn’t know these cavities existed," says Peter Kim, PhD, a researcher at the institute. "They could be key targets for the development of new antiviral drugs."
So far, no drugs have been developed that target the envelope protein because the virus is so adept at changing the pieces of the protein it presents to the outside world. The cavities, however, may be less subject to change, Kim notes.
"The importance of identifying drugs that block the HIV envelope protein is underscored by the recent success of combination drug regimens," he adds. "It would be extremely useful to add to this arsenal a drug directed against the membrane-fusion machinery."
Whitehead scientists are making the precise, three-dimensional information on the protein available to all scientists through the Protein Data Bank.
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