5ha6

Structural highlights

Function

[SYCY1_HUMAN] This endogenous retroviral envelope protein has retained its original fusogenic properties and participates in trophoblast fusion and the formation of a syncytium during placenta morphogenesis. May induce fusion through binding of SLC1A4 and SLC1A5 (PubMed:10708449, PubMed:12050356, PubMed:23492904).^{[1] [2] [3]} Endogenous envelope proteins may have kept, lost or modified their original function during evolution. Retroviral envelope proteins mediate receptor recognition and membrane fusion during early infection. The surface protein (SU) mediates receptor recognition, while the transmembrane protein (TM) acts as a class I viral fusion protein. The protein may have at least 3 conformational states: pre-fusion native state, pre-hairpin intermediate state, and post-fusion hairpin state. During viral and target cell membrane fusion, the coiled coil regions (heptad repeats) assume a trimer-of-hairpins structure, positioning the fusion peptide in close proximity to the C-terminal region of the ectodomain. The formation of this structure appears to drive apposition and subsequent fusion of membranes.

References

1. ↑ Blond JL, Lavillette D, Cheynet V, Bouton O, Oriol G, Chapel-Fernandes S, Mandrand B, Mallet F, Cosset FL. An envelope glycoprotein of the human endogenous retrovirus HERV-W is expressed in the human placenta and fuses cells expressing the type D mammalian retrovirus receptor. J Virol. 2000 Apr;74(7):3321-9. PMID:10708449
2. ↑ Lavillette D, Marin M, Ruggieri A, Mallet F, Cosset FL, Kabat D. The envelope glycoprotein of human endogenous retrovirus type W uses a divergent family of amino acid transporters/cell surface receptors. J Virol. 2002 Jul;76(13):6442-52. PMID:12050356
3. ↑ Sugimoto J, Sugimoto M, Bernstein H, Jinno Y, Schust D. A novel human endogenous retroviral protein inhibits cell-cell fusion. Sci Rep. 2013;3:1462. doi: 10.1038/srep01462. PMID:23492904 doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep01462