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Monoclonal antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-2 reverse transcriptase have been raised with the ultimate goal of generating Fab fragments for future co-crystallization studies. A number of mouse monoclonal antibodies to recombinant HIV-2 reverse transcriptase have been obtained and characterized in terms of the possible epitopes they recognise together with cross-reactivity with a related reverse transcriptase. The antibodies were shown to fall into three groups that recognize different regions of the reverse transcriptase enzyme. One antibody, which recognizes part of the RNase H domain, demonstrated cross-reactivity between the HIV-1 and HIV-2 reverse transcriptase.

Resistant variants of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) have been selected by limited passage in MT4 cells of both wild-type and 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (AZT, zidovudine)-resistant strains with the nucleoside analogues (-)-2'-deoxy-3'-thiacytidine (3TC) and (-)-2'-deoxy-5-fluoro-3'-thiacytidine (FTC). Virus variants selected independently were crossresistant to both inhibitors. This rapid in vitro selection of resistant virus has not previously been seen with nucleoside analogues but is reminiscent of that observed with the nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. However, passage of wild-type virus with a combination of AZT and FTC appreciably delayed emergence of FTC-resistant virus. DNA sequence analysis of the reverse transcriptase coding region from FTC-resistant virus revealed changes at codon 184 in the highly conserved Tyr, Met, Asp, Asp (YMDD) region. When the mutation Met184-->Val was introduced into the infectious clone HXB2, this change alone accounted for the resistance (> 1000-fold) seen with both 3TC and FTC, and for a 5- to 15-fold reduction in sensitivity to their (+) enantiomers. It had no effect on susceptibility to AZT or nevirapine and minimal effect on susceptibility to 2',3'-dideoxyinosine and 2',3'-dideoxycytidine. To determine the influence of this mutation in a background of mutations conferring resistance to AZT and nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, a series of HIV-1 variants were created by site-directed mutagenesis. All mutants with Met184-->Val were cross-resistant to 3TC and FTC. The Met184-->Val mutation did not influence nevirapine resistance, but resistance to AZT was suppressed. Similar suppression of AZT resistance was seen with Tyr181-->Cys. Interestingly, when both Met184-->Val and Tyr181-->Cys substitutions were present, highly resistant virus reverted to complete AZT sensitivity. Assessment of the interactive effects of multiple drug-resistance mutations may help to establish a rationale for using these drugs in the future therapy of HIV disease.

The reverse transcriptase (RT) of HIV-1 has been mutagenized within the carboxyl-terminal domain which harbors the RNase H. Two amino acids highly conserved among all 14 known RT sequences but not in the bacterial RNase H have been mutagenized resulting in the mutant proteins N494D and Q475E. They were expressed as recombinant proteins, purified, and analyzed for their in vitro properties in comparison to the p66 homodimeric wild-type and a previously described H539N mutant. The N494D mutant closely resembles the wild-type RNase H, exhibits an endonuclease activity and a processive RNase H activity, gives rise to small RNA hydrolysis products, and acts in concert with the RT. The Q475E mutant is more defective and resembles the H539N mutant, exhibits a retarded endonuclease activity and an impaired 3'-->5' processive RNA cleavage activity, gives rise to predominantly larger RNA hydrolysis products, is less processive in the presence of competitor substrate, and is defective in its ability to hydrolyze the polypurine tract and homopolymeric hybrids. Short homopolymeric stretches cause a pausing of the RT of wild-type and mutants which results in a coordinated action of the RNase H. Pausing of the RT correlates with RNase H cleavages about 20 nucleotides behind the point of synthesis. The defects of the mutant enzymes can be interpreted on the basis of the known crystallography data.

The C-termini of p66 and p51 forms of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase have been engineered to contain a Glu-Glu-Phe sequence recognized by a monoclonal antibody to alpha-tubulin, YL1/2. Mutated RTs were purified in a single step using peptide elution from columns of immobilized YL1/2. The known sequence requirements of the YL1/2 epitope are consistent with protein eluting from the column with an intact C-terminus. Kinetic parameters of these mutated RTs are essentially unchanged from wild-type enzyme. The p15 RNaseH domain has been purified using this method and shown to have low enzyme activity compared to the parental p66 subunit.

Purified recombinant reverse transcriptase (RT) from human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) was used to raise 21 monoclonal antibodies with anti-RT specificities. The antibodies were characterized using Western blotting against native virus and recognized either the p66 or p66, p51 components of RT. Further immunoblotting using either cyanogen bromide fragmented RT or truncated mutants of RT along with cross-competition studies enabled the location of various immunogenic regions of RT to be identified. Three antibodies recognized a linear epitope in the N-terminal region (amino acids 128-176). Also, a neutralizing RT antibody recognized a conformational epitope in this region. Three monoclonals had epitopes mapped to linear sequences in the RNase H region at the C-terminus of the RT. Another neutralizing antibody, also requiring folding of the RT protein had its epitope more centrally located (231-353). Of the remaining 13 monoclonals, 7 were roughly located in the C-terminal region and required folding of the protein for epitope recognition and only three of the remaining six could be mapped to conformational epitopes in N-terminal and central regions of the RT. None of the antibodies tested recognized HIV-2 RT products p68 and p55 in Western blot.

The C-terminal region of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) reverse transcriptase (RT) contains the domain responsible for RNase H activity. To determine the importance of this RNase H domain, specific changes in the C-terminal region of a recombinant RT expressed in Escherichia coli were introduced by amino acid substitutions and specific deletions. The enzyme activities of purified wild-type and mutant RT/RNase H proteins, standardized for protein content, were compared by filter assays and thermal inactivation kinetics. A point mutation of His 539----Asn produced an enzyme with a marked thermolabile RNase H function (nine-fold increase in inactivation), whereas RT function was only marginally more labile than that of the wild-type (two-fold). A second mutation, His 539----Asp, impaired both enzyme activities to a similar degree (four- to five-fold). A C-terminal deletion of 19 amino acids (aa) (aa 540 to 558) and a C-terminal truncation of 21 aa (aa 540 to 560) reduced RT as well as RNase H activity. A 130 aa deletion enzyme exhibited no RNase H activity and insufficient RT activity to allow inactivation studies. Two mutants, the 19 aa deletion and His----Asn, were introduced into proviral HIV-1 DNA clones to determine whether changes in enzyme activity, particularly RNase H activity, affected virus infectivity. Both mutants were non-infectious, indicating that the C-terminal 19 to 21 amino acids and His 539 of the RT/RNase H protein are essential for HIV replication. These results are consistent with the assumption that RNase H is essential for the infectivity of HIV-1.

We describe the production of eight monoclonal antibodies reactive with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 reverse transcriptase (RT) by immunization of mice with purified recombinant RT. These antibodies were found to react with one or the other of two regions of the enzyme and were found to be useful in immunodeficiency purification of large amounts of the enzyme. One epitope located at the C terminus of the enzyme was of particular interest, since it was present in only the larger, 66-kilodalton (kDa) RT species and not its smaller, 51-kDa counterpart. To define this epitope, a series of mutants was made which synthesized C-terminally truncated RT. These mutants indicated that the same region of the enzyme, when deleted, both removed the C-terminal epitope and drastically reduced RT activity, indicating the importance of this region in the function of the enzyme; however, even the 51-kDa enzyme component had demonstrable activity.

The clinical success of zidovudine has established the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) reverse transcriptase (RT) as a valid target for the design of drugs to treat acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. In order to facilitate structural studies of this enzyme, expression systems in Escherichia coli, which allow the production of large amounts of RT, have been established. Using this recombinant material the RT has been purified and crystallized. Crystallographic studies currently underway are aimed at elucidating the three-dimensional structure of HIV RT. The availability of a bacterial expression system has enabled structural/functional studies of the RT by site-directed mutagenesis. These studies have identified amino acid residues that are essential for activity of the enzyme and might be involved in substrate binding. It is hoped that structural information of this nature will allow the rational design of HIV RT inhibitors.

Bacterially expressed recombinant HIV-1 reverse transcriptase is active as both a homodimer of Mr 66,000 subunits and a heterodimer of Mr 66,000 and 51,000 subunits. The heterodimer is formed by cleavage of a C-terminal fragment from one Mr 66,000 polypeptide, which occurs during purification and crystallization of reverse transcriptase. Thus, crystals obtained from purified Mr 66,000 polypeptide preparations consisted of an apparently equimolar mixture of Mr 66,000 and 51,000 polypeptides, which were apparently analogous to the Mr 66,000 and 51,000 polypeptides detected in HIV-infected cells and in virions. Limited proteolysis of the homodimer with alpha-chymotrypsin also resulted in cleavage to a stable Mr 66,000/51,000 mixture, and proteolysis with trypsin resulted in the transient formation of some Mr 51,000 polypeptide. These results are consistent with the reverse transcriptase molecule having a protease-sensitive linker region following a structured domain of Mr 51,000. Further digestion with trypsin resulted in cleavage of the Mr 51,000 polypeptide after residue 223, yielding peptides of apparent Mr 29,000 and 30,000. A minor peptide of Mr 40,000 was also produced by cleavage of the Mr 66,000 polypeptide after residue 223. About half the original Mr 66,000 polypeptides remained resistant to proteolysis and existed in complex with the above peptides in solution. During both chymotrypsin and trypsin digestion there was an increase in the reverse transcriptase activity caused by a doubling of Vmax with little change in Km for dTTP.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)