Prediction and validation of HIV-1 gp41 ecto-transmembrane domain post-fusion trimeric structure using molecular modeling

Molecular dynamics simulations show how antibodies may rescue HIV-1 mutants incapable of infecting host cells

High mutation and replication rates of HIV-1 result in the continuous generation of variants, allowing it to adapt to changing host environments. Mutations often have deleterious effects, but variants carrying them are rapidly purged. Surprisingly, a particular variant incapable of entering host cells was found to be rescued by host antibodies targeting HIV-1. Understanding the molecular mechanism of this rescue is important to develop and improve antibody-based therapies. To unravel the underlying mechanisms, we performed fully atomistic molecular dynamics simulations of the HIV-1 gp41 trimer responsible for viral entry into host cells, its entry-deficient variant, and its complex with the rescuing antibody. We find that the Q563R mutation, which the entry-deficient variant carries, prevents the native conformation of the gp41 6-helix bundle required for entry and stabilizes an alternative conformation instead. This is the consequence of substantial changes in the secondary structure and interactions between the domains of gp41. Binding of the antibody F240 to gp41 reverses these changes and re-establishes the native conformation, resulting in rescue. To test the generality of this mechanism, we performed simulations with the entry-deficient L565A variant and antibody 3D6. We find that 3D6 binding was able to reverse structural and interaction changes introduced by the mutation and restore the native gp41 conformation. Viral variants may not only escape antibodies but be aided by them in their survival, potentially compromising antibody-based therapies, including vaccination and passive immunization. Our simulation framework could serve as a tool to assess the likelihood of such resistance against specific antibodies.

Concerted Interactions between Multiple gp41 Trimers and the Target Cell Lipidome May Be Required for HIV-1 Entry

The HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein gp41 mediates the fusion between viral and host cell membranes leading to virus entry and target cell infection. Despite years of research, important aspects of this process such as the number of gp41 trimers involved and how they orchestrate the rearrangement of the lipids in the apposed membranes along the fusion pathway remain obscure. To elucidate these molecular underpinnings, we performed coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations of HIV-1 virions pinned to the CD4 T cell membrane by different numbers of gp41 trimers. We built realistic cell and viral membranes by mimicking their respective lipid compositions. We found that a single gp41 was inadequate for mediating fusion. Lipid mixing between membranes, indicating the onset of fusion, was efficient when three or more gp41 trimers pinned the membranes. The gp41 trimers interacted strongly with many different lipids in the host cell membrane, triggering lipid configurational rearrangements, exchange, and mixing. Simpler membranes, comprising fewer lipid types, displayed strong resistance to fusion, revealing the crucial role of the lipidomes in HIV-1 entry. Performing simulations at different temperatures, we estimated the free energy barrier to lipid mixing, and hence membrane stalk formation, with three and four tethering gp41 trimers to be ∼6.2 kcal/mol, a >4-fold reduction over estimates without gp41. Together, these findings present molecular-level, quantitative insights into the early stages of gp41-mediated HIV-1 entry. Preventing the requisite gp41 molecules from tethering the membranes or altering membrane lipid compositions may be potential intervention strategies.