Open enlarged HIV Life Cycle in new window.

Four main events in the HIV life cycle (see scheme above) offer leads for the development of antiviral therapies. Viral Entry is interplay between viral factors and host cells. Upon entry into the cell, the virus is uncoated and its RNA genome is converted into DNA by HIV reverse transcriptase. The resulting proviral DNA is integrated into the host cell genome by HIV integrase. Once integrated, host factors can transcribe the proviral DNA into new viral RNA genomes, and translate this RNA into precursor polyproteins. These polyproteins are cleaved into smaller pieces by HIV protease, providing the building blocks for new viruses. After assembly and maturation, new viruses are released from the infected cell to initiate subsequent rounds of infection.



All four steps in the viral life cycle are areas of active discovery research at Tibotec.