Characterization of full-length and cytoplasmic tail-truncated envelope glycoproteins incorporated into human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) virions and virus-like particles

ABSTRACT During transport to the surface of infected cells, the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) envelope glycoprotein (Env) trimer is cleaved to produce the mature functional Env trimer [(gp120/gp41) 3 ]. Env cleavage stabilizes the pretriggered Env conformation (PTC), the major target for broadly neutralizing antibodies. Although the mature Env is relatively enriched in virions and virus-like particles (VLPs), conformationally flexible uncleaved Envs typically contaminate preparations of these particles. In non-permissive cells, the long ~149-residue gp41 cytoplasmic tail (CT) is necessary for Env incorporation into virions. In a minority of HIV-1 strains, the gp41 CT is clipped in virions by the viral protease. Here, we compare Envs with CT truncations and CT alterations that increase or decrease protease clipping in permissive cells. Changes in protease clipping affected amphotericin B sensitivity but did not alter other viral phenotypes. By contrast, a corresponding CT truncation (L748STOP) increased cell-surface and virion Env levels, cell-cell fusion, and virus infectivity and cytotoxicity. Notably, in diverse HIV-1 strains, the ratio of cleaved/uncleaved Envs in preparations of virions and extracellular vesicles was increased by this CT truncation. ESCRT and ALIX-binding region (EABR) vesicles incorporated significantly more uncleaved CT-truncated Env than HIV-1 VLPs. Env CT deletion/truncation did not qualitatively alter the viral neutralization profile; however, increased antibody concentrations were required to neutralize viruses with the higher levels of cleaved Env that resulted from CT truncation. Specific CT truncations provide a means of enriching the PTC and limiting the incorporation of nonfunctional and conformationally heterogeneous uncleaved Envs into preparations of virions and VLPs. IMPORTANCE The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) envelope glycoprotein (Env) trimer mediates entry of the virus into host cells. The pretriggered conformation (PTC) of Env is the major target for protective broadly neutralizing antibodies, but the PTC is unstable and therefore difficult to study. The cleavage of the flexible Env precursor stabilizes the PTC. Therefore, the presence of uncleaved Env compromises the purity of the PTC in Env preparations. We found that certain truncations of the Env cytoplasmic tail resulted in improved ratios of cleaved:uncleaved Env in preparations of HIV-1 viruses or virus-like particles. In some contexts, cytoplasmic tail truncation increased the level of Env in virus preparations. Although higher concentrations of antibodies were required to neutralize these viruses, Envs with specific truncations of the cytoplasmic tail retained the PTC. Thus, cytoplasmic tail truncation could assist efforts to purify and characterize the Env PTC on the viral membrane.