January 13, 2014

Tricky Protein May Help HIV Vaccine Development


Newly described three-part protein could guide future efforts at Duke

Duke scientists have taken aim at what may be an Achilles' heel of the HIV virus.

Combining expertise in biochemistry, immunology and advanced computation, researchers at Duke University have determined the structure of a key part of the HIV envelope protein, the gp41 membrane proximal external region (MPER), which previously eluded detailed structural description.