Parallels Between Cytokinesis and Retroviral Budding: A Role for the ESCRT Machinery

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2007-06, Vol.316 (5833), p.1908-1912
• Main Authors: Carlton, Jez G, Martin-Serrano, Juan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abscission; Adenosine Triphosphatases - metabolism; Amino Acid Motifs; Biological and medical sciences; Budding; Calcium-Binding Proteins - metabolism; Carrier Proteins - metabolism; Cell Cycle Proteins - metabolism; Cell division; Cell lines; Cell membranes; Cellular biology; Cytokinesis; Daughter cells; DNA-Binding Proteins - metabolism; Endosomal Sorting Complexes Required for Transport; Endosomes - metabolism; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; HeLa Cells; HIV; HIV 1; HIV-1 - physiology; Human immunodeficiency virus; Human immunodeficiency virus 1; Humans; Infectious diseases; Microbiology; Microtubules - metabolism; Molecular biology; Nuclear Proteins - metabolism; Plasmids; Protein Binding; Protein Structure, Tertiary; Proteins; R-SNARE Proteins - metabolism; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - metabolism; Replicative cycle, interference, host-virus relations, pathogenicity, miscellaneous strains; RNA Interference; Small interfering RNA; Syntaxin 1 - metabolism; Transcription Factors - metabolism; Transfection; Vesicular Transport Proteins - metabolism; Virology
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1143422

During cytokinesis, as dividing animal cells pull apart into two daughter cells, the final stage, termed abscission, requires breakage of the midbody, a thin membranous stalk connecting the daughter cells. This membrane fission event topologically resembles the budding of viruses, such as HIV-1, from infected cells. We found that two proteins involved in HIV-1 budding--tumor susceptibility gene 101 (Tsg101), a subunit of the endosomal sorting complex required for transport I (ESCRT-I), and Alix, an ESCRT-associated protein--were recruited to the midbody during cytokinesis by interaction with centrosome protein 55 (Cep55), a centrosome and midbody protein essential for abscission. Tsg101, Alix, and possibly other components of ESCRT-I were required for the completion of cytokinesis. Thus, HIV-1 budding and cytokinesis use a similar subset of cellular components to carry out topologically similar membrane fission events.