Evidence for direct association of Vpr and matrix protein p17 within the HIV-1 virion.

Vpr is one of the auxiliary proteins of HIV-1 and is selectively incorporated into the virion by a process involving the C-terminal p6 portion of the Gag precursor Pr55. Vpr and the matrix protein p17 are the components of the viral preintegration complex and appear to play important roles in the nuclear transport of proviral DNA in nondividing cells. In the present study, we have demonstrated by coimmunoprecipitation experiments that Vpr associates with matrix protein p17 but not with capsid protein p24 within the HIV-1 virion. Experiments employing the yeast two-hybrid GAL4 assay for protein-protein interactions also demonstrated a direct association between Vpr and the C-terminal region of matrix protein p17. Association of Vpr and the matrix protein p17 within the mature virion is consistent with their collaborative role in the nuclear transportation of the viral preintegration complex in nondividing cells such as macrophages.