Cell Reports (Nov 2021)

Structural basis of glycan276-dependent recognition by HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibodies

  • Christopher A. Cottrell,
  • Kartik Manne,
  • Rui Kong,
  • Shuishu Wang,
  • Tongqing Zhou,
  • Gwo-Yu Chuang,
  • Robert J. Edwards,
  • Rory Henderson,
  • Katarzyna Janowska,
  • Megan Kopp,
  • Bob C. Lin,
  • Mark K. Louder,
  • Adam S. Olia,
  • Reda Rawi,
  • Chen-Hsiang Shen,
  • Justin D. Taft,
  • Jonathan L. Torres,
  • Nelson R. Wu,
  • Baoshan Zhang,
  • Nicole A. Doria-Rose,
  • Myron S. Cohen,
  • Barton F. Haynes,
  • Lawrence Shapiro,
  • Andrew B. Ward,
  • Priyamvada Acharya,
  • John R. Mascola,
  • Peter D. Kwong

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 37, no. 5
p. 109922

Abstract

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Summary: Recognition of N-linked glycan at residue N276 (glycan276) at the periphery of the CD4-binding site (CD4bs) on the HIV-envelope trimer is a formidable challenge for many CD4bs-directed antibodies. To understand how this glycan can be recognized, here we isolate two lineages of glycan276-dependent CD4bs antibodies. Antibody CH540-VRC40.01 (named for donor-lineage.clone) neutralizes 81% of a panel of 208 diverse strains, while antibody CH314-VRC33.01 neutralizes 45%. Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of these two antibodies and 179NC75, a previously identified glycan276-dependent CD4bs antibody, in complex with HIV-envelope trimer reveal substantially different modes of glycan276 recognition. Despite these differences, binding of glycan276-dependent antibodies maintains a glycan276 conformation similar to that observed in the absence of glycan276-binding antibodies. By contrast, glycan276-independent CD4bs antibodies, such as VRC01, displace glycan276 upon binding. These results provide a foundation for understanding antibody recognition of glycan276 and suggest its presence may be crucial for priming immunogens seeking to initiate broad CD4bs recognition.

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