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Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Vpr interacts with antiapoptotic mitochondrial protein HAX-1.

Yedavalli VS, Shih HM, Chiang YP, Lu CY, Chang LY, Chen MY, Chuang CY, Dayton AI, Jeang KT, Huang LM

Molecular Virology Section, Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Maryland 20892-0460, USA.

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 viral protein R (Vpr) is required for viral pathogenesis and has been implicated in T-cell apoptosis through its activation of caspase 3 and caspase 9 and perturbation of mitochondrial membrane potential. To understand better Vpr-mitochondria interaction, we report here the identification of antiapoptotic mitochondrial protein HAX-1 as a novel Vpr target. We show that Vpr and HAX-1 physically associate with each other. Overexpression of Vpr in cells dislocates HAX-1 from its normal residence in mitochondria and creates mitochondrion instability and cell death. Conversely, overexpression of HAX-1 suppressed the proapoptotic activity of Vpr.

Published 17 October 2005 in J Virol, 79(21): 13735-46.
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