HIV Integrase

HIV integrase is one of the three key enzymes of the pol gene of HIV. HIV integrase catalyzes the insertion into the genome of the infected human cell of viral DNA produced by the retrotranscription process. This unique step in the virus life cycle provides a variety of points for intervention and hence is an attractive target for the development of new therapeutics for the treatment of AIDS. HIV integrase includes HIV-1 and HIV-2 integrases.

HIV-1 integrase is a 32-kDa enzyme that carries out DNA integration in a two-step reaction. In the first step, called 3′ processing, two nucleotides are removed from each 3′ end of the viral DNA made by reverse transcription. In the next step, called DNA strand transfer, a pair of transesterification reactions integrates the ends of the viral DNA into the host genome. Integrase is comprised of three structurally and functionally distinct domains, and all three domains are required for each step of the integration reaction.