Rôle de la conformation des glycoprotéines de l’enveloppe du VIH-1 dans la réponse cytotoxique cellulaire dépendante des anticorps et impact des protéines virales Nef et Vpu

Alors que d’énormes efforts sont mis de l’avant pour mettre en place des stratégies thérapeutiques contre l’infection au VIH-1, il est nécessaire de mieux cerner les déterminants viraux qui aideront à l’efficacité de celles-ci. En ce sens, une volumineuse littérature scientifique suggère que les anticorps contre le VIH-1 possédant une capacité à induire une réponse effectrice dépendante de leur portion Fc puissent jouer un rôle important dans la prévention de l’infection et dans la progression de la maladie. Cependant, peu d’information est disponible concernant les déterminants reconnus par ces anticorps et comment le virus s’en protège. Le but des travaux présentés dans cette thèse est donc d’élucider les mécanismes viraux contrôlant la reconnaissance des cellules infectées par ces anticorps capables d’induire une réponse effectrice. De par les corrélats de protection identifiés au cours de l’essai vaccinal RV144, les travaux présentés ici se concentrent sur la réponse cytotoxique dépendante des anticorps (ADCC), puisqu’il s’agit d’une réponse effectrice suggérée pour avoir joué un rôle dans la protection observée dans le RV144, seul essai vaccinal anti-VIH à avoir démontré un certain degré de protection. De plus, plusieurs anticorps capables d’induire cette réponse contre le VIH sont connus pour reconnaître les glycoprotéines de surface du virus (Env) dans une conformation dite ouverte, c’est-à-dire la conformation adoptée lors de la liaison d’Env avec son récepteur CD4 (épitopes CD4i). Nous avons mis au point deux techniques in vitro permettant d’étudier ces changements de conformation ainsi que leur impact sur la réponse ADCC. Les techniques mises au point, un ÉLISA sur base cellulaire pour mesurer les changements de conformation d’Env ainsi que la mesure de la réponse ADCC par cytométrie en flux, nous ont permis de démontrer comment le virus empêche l’exposition des épitopes d’Env CD4i. L’activité simultanée des protéines accessoires virales Nef et Vpu sur le retrait du récepteur CD4 de la surface des cellules infectées et l’inhibition du facteur de restriction Tétherine / BST-2 par Vpu contrôlent à la fois les niveaux d’Env et de CD4 à la surface cellulaire et donc modulent l’interaction Env-CD4 et ultimement la susceptibilité à la réponse ADCC contre les épitopes CD4i reconnus par des anticorps hautement prévalents lors de l’infection au VIH. Également, nous démontrons comment de petits composés mimant la liaison de CD4 sur Env sont capables de forcer l’exposition des épitopes CD4i, même en présence des protéines Nef et Vpu, et donc d’augmenter la susceptibilité des cellules infectées à la réponse ADCC. Une autre découverte présentée ici est la démonstration que la portion soluble d’Env produite par les cellules infectées peut interagir avec le récepteur CD4 des cellules non-infectées avoisinantes et induire leur reconnaissance et élimination par la réponse ADCC contre Env. Somme toute, la modulation de la réponse ADCC par l’interaction Env–CD4 représente un important pilier de la relation hôte – pathogène du VIH-1 de la perspective des réponses Fc-dépendantes. Les travaux présentés dans cette thèse ont le potentiel d’être utilisés dans l’élaboration de nouvelles stratégies antivirales tout en élargissant les connaissances fondamentales de cette interaction hôte – pathogène.While huge efforts are put forth to develop therapeutic strategies against HIV-1 infection, it is necessary to better understand the viral determinants that will help the effectiveness of these approaches. Moreover, a voluminous scientific literature suggests that antibodies against HIV-1 that have the ability to induce an Fc-mediated effector response can play an important role in the prevention and control of the disease. However, little information is available regarding the determinants recognized by these antibodies and how the virus protects itself from this response. The aim of the work presented in this thesis is therefore to better elucidate the viral mechanisms controlling recognition of infected cells by antibodies capable of inducing effector responses. In regards to the correlates of protection identified in the RV144 vaccine trial, the work presented here focuses on antibody-dependant cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), since this effector response was suggested to have played a role in the protection observed in the RV144 trial. In addition, many antibodies that induce this response against HIV are known to recognize the virus surface glycoprotein (Env) in an open conformation, that is to say, the conformation adopted by the binding of Env with the CD4 receptor (CD4i epitopes). We have developed two in vitro techniques to study these conformational changes and their impact on ADCC responses. The techniques developed, a cell-based ELISA to measure Env conformational changes and the measure of ADCC responses by flow cytometry, allowed us to demonstrate how the virus prevents exposure of Env CD4i epitopes. The simultaneous activity of viral accessory proteins Vpu and Nef on the removal of CD4 from the surface of infected cells and the Vpu-mediated inhibition of the restriction factor Tetherin / BST-2 control both Env and CD4 levels at the cell surface, thus modulating Env-CD4 interaction. This ultimately results in a decrease in the susceptibility of infected cells to ADCC responses against CD4i epitopes recognized by antibodies that are highly prevalent during HIV infection. Also, we demonstrate how using small compounds mimicking the CD4 binding of Env forces the exposure of CD4i epitopes, even in the presence of Nef and Vpu proteins, and therefore increases the susceptibility to ADCC responses against infected cells. Another discovery is presented here that demonstrates how the soluble portion of Env produced by infected cells can interact with the CD4 receptor on the bystanders non-infected cells and induce their recognition and elimination by ADCC responses against Env. Overall, the modulation of ADCC responses by Env-CD4 interaction is an important pillar of HIV-1 host – pathogen interaction from the perspective of Fc effector functions. The work presented in this thesis has the potential to be used in the development of new antiviral strategies while expanding the fundamental understanding of HIV-1 host - pathogen interactions

Transitions - Note 5

Note complète ; Résumé ; Capsule 5 : L'influence des aspirations scolaires sur l'accès aux études postsecondaires

Paring Down HIV Env: Design and Crystal Structure of a Stabilized Inner Domain of HIV-1 gp120 Displaying a Major ADCC Target of the A32 Region

SummaryEvidence supports a role of antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC) toward transitional epitopes in the first and second constant (C1-C2) regions of gp120 (A32-like epitopes) in preventing HIV-1 infection and in vaccine-induced protection. Here, we describe the first successful attempt at isolating the inner domain (ID) of gp120 as an independent molecule that encapsulates the A32-like region within a minimal structural unit of the HIV-1 Env. Through structure-based design, we developed ID2, which consists of the ID expressed independently of the outer domain and stabilized in the CD4-bound conformation by an inter-layer disulfide bond. ID2 expresses C1-C2 epitopes in the context of CD4-triggered full-length gp120 but without any known neutralizing epitope present. Thus, ID2 represents a novel probe for the analysis and/or selective induction of antibody responses to the A32 epitope region. We also present the crystal structure of ID2 complexed with mAb A32, which defines its epitope

The V86M mutation in HIV-1 capsid confers resistance to TRIM5α by abrogation of cyclophilin A-dependent restriction and enhancement of viral nuclear import.

RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are.BACKGROUND: HIV-1 is inhibited early after entry into cells expressing some simian orthologues of the tripartite motif protein family member TRIM5α. Mutants of the human orthologue (TRIM5αhu) can also provide protection against HIV-1. The host protein cyclophilin A (CypA) binds incoming HIV-1 capsid (CA) proteins and enhances early stages of HIV-1 replication by unknown mechanisms. On the other hand, the CA-CypA interaction is known to increase HIV-1 susceptibility to restriction by TRIM5α. Previously, the mutation V86M in the CypA-binding loop of HIV-1 CA was found to be selected upon serial passaging of HIV-1 in cells expressing Rhesus macaque TRIM5α (TRIM5αrh). The objectives of this study were (i) to analyze whether V86M CA allows HIV-1 to escape mutants of TRIM5αhu, and (ii) to characterize the role of CypA in the resistance to TRIM5α conferred by V86M. RESULTS: We find that in single-cycle HIV-1 vector transduction experiments, V86M confers partial resistance against R332G-R335G TRIM5αhu and other TRIM5αhu variable 1 region mutants previously isolated in mutagenic screens. However, V86M HIV-1 does not seem to be resistant to R332G-R335G TRIM5αhu in a spreading infection context. Strikingly, restriction of V86M HIV-1 vectors by TRIM5αhu mutants is mostly insensitive to the presence of CypA in infected cells. NMR experiments reveal that V86M alters CypA interactions with, and isomerisation of CA. On the other hand, V86M does not affect the CypA-mediated enhancement of HIV-1 replication in permissive human cells. Finally, qPCR experiments show that V86M increases HIV-1 transport to the nucleus of cells expressing restrictive TRIM5α. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that V86M de-couples the two functions associated with CA-CypA binding, i.e. the enhancement of restriction by TRIM5α and the enhancement of HIV-1 replication in permissive human cells. V86M enhances the early stages of HIV-1 replication in restrictive cells by improving nuclear import. In summary, our data suggest that HIV-1 escapes restriction by TRIM5α through the selective disruption of CypA-dependent, TRIM5α-mediated inhibition of nuclear import. However, V86M does not seem to relieve restriction of a spreading HIV-1 infection by TRIM5αhu mutants, underscoring context-specific restriction mechanisms

A putative SUMO interacting motif in the B30.2/SPRY domain of rhesus macaque TRIM5α important for NF-κB/AP-1 signaling and HIV-1 restriction

TRIM5α from the rhesus macaque (TRIM5αRh) is a restriction factor that shows strong activity against HIV-1. TRIM5αRh binds specifically to HIV-1 capsid (CA) through its B30.2/PRYSPRY domain shortly after entry of the virus into the cytoplasm. Recently, three putative SUMO interacting motifs (SIMs) have been identified in the PRYSPRY domain of human and macaque TRIM5α. However, structural modeling of this domain suggested that two of them were buried in the hydrophobic core of the protein, implying that interaction with SUMO was implausible, while the third one was not relevant to restriction. In light of these results, we re-analyzed the TRIM5αRh PRYSPRY sequence and identified an additional putative SIM (435VIIC438) which we named SIM4. This motif is exposed at the surface of the PRYSPRY domain, allowing potential interactions with SUMO or SUMOylated proteins. Introducing a double mutation in SIM4 (V435K, I436K) did not alter stability, unlike mutations in SIM1. SIM4-mutated TRIM5αRh failed to bind HIV-1CA and lost the ability to restrict this virus. Accordingly, SIM4 undergoes significant variation among primates and substituting this motif with naturally occurring SIM4 variants affected HIV-1 restriction by TRIM5αRh, suggesting a direct role in capsid recognition. Interestingly, SIM4-mutated TRIM5αRh also failed to activate NF-κB and AP-1-mediated transcription. Although there is no direct evidence that SIM4 is involved in direct interaction with SUMO or a SUMOylated protein, mutating this motif strongly reduced co-localization of TRIM5αRh with SUMO-1 and with PML, a SUMOylated nuclear protein. In conclusion, this new putative SIM is crucial for both direct interaction with incoming capsids and for NF-κB/AP-1 signaling. We speculate that the latter function is mediated by interactions of SIM4 with a SUMOylated protein involved in the NF-κB/AP-1 signaling pathways

Small CD4 Mimetics Prevent HIV-1 Uninfected Bystander CD4+ T Cell Killing Mediated by Antibody-dependent Cell-mediated Cytotoxicity

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection causes a progressive depletion of CD4+ T cells. Despite its importance for HIV-1 pathogenesis, the precise mechanisms underlying CD4+ T-cell depletion remain incompletely understood. Here we make the surprising observation that antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) mediates the death of uninfected bystander CD4+ T cells in cultures of HIV-1-infected cells. While HIV-1-infected cells are protected from ADCC by the action of the viral Vpu and Nef proteins, uninfected bystander CD4+T cells bind gp120 shed from productively infected cells and are efficiently recognized by ADCC-mediating antibodies. Thus, gp120 shedding represents a viral mechanism to divert ADCC responses towards uninfected bystander CD4+ T cells. Importantly, CD4-mimetic molecules redirect ADCC responses from uninfected bystander cells to HIV-1-infected cells; therefore, CD4-mimetic compounds might have therapeutic utility in new strategies aimed at specifically eliminating HIV-1-infected cells