Areas of Interest
The HIV genome encodes for four main accessory proteins: Nef, Vpr, Vif, and Vpu. These proteins work in unique ways to help the virus evade the host immune response to promote the spread of HIV infection. One mechanism by which this virus evades the host immune response is through downregulating surface MHC-I molecules. Previous research has illustrated that the Nef accessory protein downregulates surface MHC-I expression in the presence of infection. While there is a suggested mechanism by which Nef disrupts MHC-I trafficking, little is known about the impact of the remaining accessory proteins on MHC-I trafficking. My research seeks to highlight the roles of the remaining HIV accessory proteins in the disruption of mature MHC-I trafficking to the cell surface in the presence of infection.