Primer tRNAs for reverse transcription

Comparative nucleic acid chaperone properties of the nucleocapsid protein NCp7 and Tat protein of HIV-1

“…3.1.1. Positioning the replication primer tRNA onto genomic RNA During assembly, cellular tRNA Lys isoacceptors are selectively incorporated into virions (Jiang et al, 1993;Mak and Kleiman, 1997;Pavon-Eternod et al, 2010). The chaperone properties of the NC domain in Pr55gag are thought to facilitate the specific placement of the tRNA Lys,3 primer on the primer binding site (PBS) of the viral RNA (Cen et al, 1999;Feng et al, 1999;Cruceanu et al, 2006b;Guo et al, 2009;Wu et al, 2010).…”

Formation of the tRNALys packaging complex in HIV‐1

“…Upon its release into the cytoplasm, the CA core disassembles, and within the resulting nucleoprotein complex, the viral RNA genome is copied into a double-stranded cDNA by RT. The tRNA primer, which is annealed to the genomic RNA primer binding site (PBS), initiates reverse transcription [2], a complex process involving multiple strand-transfer reactions facilitated by the NC protein, a nucleic acid chaperone [3]. The resultant double-stranded viral DNA within the pre-integration complex is translocated into the nucleus of the infected cell where it integrates into the host cell's DNA and codes for viral mRNA and proteins.…”

tRNALys3: The Primer tRNA for Reverse Transcription in HIV‐1

“…Different retroviruses use different cellular tRNAs as primer [see (1) for review]. tRNA Trp is the primer for avian retroviruses, and tRNA Pro is a common primer for murine retroviruses.…”

“…For an excellent summary of earlier work on retroviral primer tRNAs, the reader is referred to the review by Waters and Mullin (3). Later reviews on this topic include those by Litvak et al (6), Marquet et al (7 ), Leis et al (8), and Mak and Kleiman (1). KLEIMAN…”