Molecular interaction of gp120 and B40 aptamer: A potential new HIV-1 entry inhibitor drug

Abstract

HIV-1 infection and its concomitant disease – Aids, remain major public health problems in southern Africa. While current antiretroviral drugs have prolonged the quality of life for many HIV-positive individuals, they do not eliminate the virus (2, 5). This is compounded by the rapid emergence of drug resistant HIV-1 strains. For these reasons, a search for novel antiretroviral agents with modalities different from those currently in use remains a high priority. As a novel strategy to combat the HIV/Aids epidemic, we have recently discovered and described small nucleic acid ligands called aptamers with antiviral activity (1, 4). These aptamers prevent HIV-1 infection by binding to gp120, which is the viral surface envelope glycoprotein necessary for the earliest stage of infection called entry. In this study we used in silico molecular modelling coupled with biochemical experiments to delineate the interaction of one of the aptamers called B40 and gp120; with a view of using the information to develop the aptamer as a novel HIV-1 entry inhibitor drug