NLM AIDSLINE Constitutive expression of HIV-1 reverse
transcriptase heterodimer in a human cell line. Lari MA; Gibbs
RA; Baylor College of Medicine Houston, TX. December 30, 1995
Natl Conf Hum Retroviruses Relat Infect (1st). 1993 Dec
12-16;:125. Human Immunodeficiency virus type-1 (HIV-1) reverse
transcriptase (RT) is a heterodimer composed of 51 and 66 kDa
subunits (p51 and p66). In order to generate a human cell line
that constitutively expresses an active HIV RT heterodimer, the
entire 66 kDa RT region was first cloned in a mammalian
expression vector (pCMV66). Transient transfection of pCMV66
into the HT-1080 human fibrosarcoma cell line led to the
expression of p66 without the generation of p51, and only a low
level of RT activity could be detected. Stable pCMV66 cell lines
also only expressed the 66 kDa subunit; thus, it appears that
endogenous cellular proteases are not capable of cleaving p66 to
generate the 51 kDa subunit. Attempts to establish a stable cell
line expressing protease-RT region of HIV