Changes in the cytopathic effects of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 associated with a single amino acid alteration in the ectodomain of the gp41 transmembrane glycoprotein.

A human immunodeficiency virus type 1 mutant with a single amino acid change (designated 596 W/M) in the ectodomain of the gp41 transmembrane envelope glycoprotein replicated in T-cell lines and in CD4-positive peripheral blood mononuclear cells identically to the wild-type virus. However, the cytopathic effects associated with infection by the mutant virus were altered, with a marked attenuation of syncytium formation and a significant delay in single-cell lysis relative to those of the wild-type virus-infected culture. The 596 W/M mutant is apparently defective in a function that is dispensable for virus entry but that contributes to the efficiency of induction of viral cytopathic effects.