Temporal control by cofactors prevents kinetic trapping in retroviral Gag lattice assembly.

ABSTRACT: For retroviruses like HIV to proliferate, they must form virions shaped by the self-assembly of Gag polyproteins into a rigid lattice. This immature Gag lattice has been structurally characterized and reconstituted in vitro, revealing the sensitivity of lattice assembly to multiple cofactors. Due to this sensitivity, the energetic criterion for forming stable lattices is unknown, as are their corresponding rates. Here, we use a reaction-diffusion model designed from the cryo-ET structure of the immature Gag lattice to map a phase diagram of assembly outcomes controlled by experimentally constrained rates and free energies, over experimentally relevant timescales. We find that productive assembly of complete lattices in bulk solution is extraordinarily difficult due to the large size of thi

SUBMITTER: Qian Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10432227 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature