Conformational Plasticity of the 2A Proteinase from Enterovirus 71

The 2A proteinase (2A^pro) is an enterovirally encoded cysteine protease that plays essential roles in both the processing of viral precursor polyprotein and the hijacking of host cell translation and other processes in the virus life cycle. Crystallographic studies of 2A^pro from enterovirus 71 (EV71) and its interaction with the substrate are reported here. EV71 2A^pro was comprised of an N-terminal domain of a four-stranded antiparallel β sheet and a C-terminal domain of a six-stranded antiparallel β barrel with a tightly bound zinc atom. Unlike in other 2A^pro structures, there is an open cleft across the surface of the protein in an open conformation. As demonstrated by the crystallographic studies and modeling of the complex structure, the open cleft could be fitted with the substrate. On comparison 2A^pro of EV71 to those of the human rhinovirus 2 and coxsackievirus B4, the open conformation could be closed with a hinge motion in the bII2 and cII β strands. This was supported by molecular dynamic simulation. The structural variation among different 2A^pro structures indicates a conformational flexibility in the substrate-binding cleft. The open structure provides an accessible framework for the design and development of therapeutics against the viral target.     

Crystal structure of the coxsackievirus A16 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase elongation complex reveals novel features in motif A dynamics

<正>Dear Editor,Coxsackievirus A16(CV A16)and enterovirus 71(EV71)are currently the two primary causative agents of handfoot-and-mouth disease(HFMD)(Solomon et al.,2010;Mao et al.,2014),threatening health of children worldwide.They both belong to the Enterovirus genus of the     

Structure Elucidation of Coxsackievirus A16 in Complex with GPP3 Informs a Systematic Review of Highly Potent Capsid Binders to Enteroviruses

The replication of enterovirus 71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16), which are the major cause of hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in children, can be inhibited by the capsid binder GPP3. Here, we present the crystal structure of CVA16 in complex with GPP3, which clarifies the role of the key residues involved in interactions with the inhibitor. Based on this model, in silico docking was performed to investigate the interactions with the two next-generation capsid binders NLD and ALD, which we show to be potent inhibitors of a panel of enteroviruses with potentially interesting pharmacological properties. A meta-analysis was performed using the available structural information to obtain a deeper insight into those structural features required for capsid binders to interact effectively and also those that confer broad-spectrum anti-enterovirus activity.     

Crystal structure of coxsackievirus B3 3Dpol highlights the functional importance of residue 5 in picornavirus polymerases

The crystal structure of the coxsackievirus B3 polymerase has been solved at 2.25-Å resolution and is shown to be highly homologous to polymerases from poliovirus, rhinovirus, and foot-and-mouth disease viruses. Together, these structures highlight several conserved structural elements in picornaviral polymerases, including a proteolytic activation-dependent N-terminal structure that is essential for full activity. Interestingly, a comparison of all of the picornaviral polymerase structures shows an unusual conformation for residue 5, which is always located at a distortion in the β-strand composed of residues 1 to 8. In our earlier structure of the poliovirus polymerase, we attributed this conformation to a crystal packing artifact, but the observation that this conformation is conserved among picornaviruses led us to examine the role of this residue in further detail. Here we use coxsackievirus polymerase to show that elongation activity correlates with the hydrophobicity of residue 5 and, surprisingly, more hydrophobic residues result in higher activity. Based on structural analysis, we propose that this residue becomes buried during the nucleotide repositioning step that occurs prior to phosphoryl transfer. We present a model in which the buried N terminus observed in all picornaviral polymerases is essential for stabilizing the structure during this conformational change.     

肠道病毒71型和柯萨奇病毒A16型多重反转录聚合酶链反应的建立及初步应用

本文旨在建立一种快速、高效的方法检测肠道病毒71型（EV71）和柯萨奇病毒A16型(CA16)的方法,以用于儿童手足口病的病原学监测。通过设计肠道病毒通用引物和CA16与EV71的型特异性引物,建立不同引物浓度配比及两阶段退火温度以提高检测敏感性和特异性的多重反转录聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）方法,并对首都儿科研究所附属儿童医院2010年3~10月收集的371例手足口病患儿共381份临床标本同时进行病毒分离和核酸检测。结果显示,本研究建立的多重RT-PCR方法对CA16和EV71的最低模板检测浓度分别为5.32 pg/ml和0.64 pg/ml,反应特异度为100%。应用该方法检测381份手足口病临床标本的总阳性率为78.4%,其中CA16与EV71的检测阳性率分别为32.6%和35.8%,二者检测阳性比为1:1.1。以病毒分离为标准,多重RT-PCR对CA16及EV71检测的准确率分别为95.2%和98.6%。因此,本研究新建立的多重RT-PCR方法准确、简便,适用于较大量样本的手足口病病原学监测。2010年引起北京地区儿童手足口病的主要病原为CA16和EV71。     

Crystal structure of human enterovirus 71 3C protease

Human enterovirus 71 (EV71) is the major pathogen that causes hand, foot and mouth disease that particularly affects young children. Growing hand, foot and mouth disease outbreaks were observed worldwide in recent years and caused devastating losses both economically and politically. However, vaccines or effective drugs are unavailable to date. The genome of EV71 consists of a positive sense, single-stranded RNA of ∼ 7400 bp, encoding a large precursor polyprotein that requires proteolytic processing to generate mature viral proteins. The proteolytic processing mainly depends on EV71 3C protease (3C^pro) that possesses both proteolysis and RNA binding activities, which enable the protease to perform multiple tasks in viral replication and pathogen-host interactions. The central roles played by EV71 3C^pro make it an appealing target for antiviral drug development. We determined the first crystal structure of EV71 3C^pro and analyzed its enzymatic activity. The crystal structure shows that EV71 3C^pro has a typical chymotrypsin-like fold that is common in picornaviral 3C^pro. Strikingly, we found an important surface loop, also denoted as β-ribbon, which adopts a novel open conformation in EV71 3C^pro. We identified two important residues located at the base of the β-ribbon, Gly123 and His133, which form hinges that govern the intrinsic flexibility of the ribbon. Structure-guided mutagenesis studies revealed that the hinge residues are important to EV71 3C^pro proteolytic activities. In summary, our work provides the first structural insight into EV71 3C^pro, including a mobile β-ribbon, which is relevant to the proteolytic mechanism. Our data also provides a framework for structure-guided inhibitor design against EV71 3C^pro.     

Enterovirus 71 and coxsackievirus A16 3C proteases: binding to rupintrivir and their substrates and anti-hand, foot, and mouth disease virus drug design

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) and coxsackievirus A16 (CVA16) are the major causative agents of hand, foot, and mouth disease (HFMD), which is prevalent in Asia. Thus far, there are no prophylactic or therapeutic measures against HFMD. The 3C proteases from EV71 and CVA16 play important roles in viral replication and are therefore ideal drug targets. By using biochemical, mutational, and structural approaches, we broadly characterized both proteases. A series of high-resolution structures of the free or substrate-bound enzymes were solved. These structures, together with our cleavage specificity assay, well explain the marked substrate preferences of both proteases for particular P4, P1, and P1' residue types, as well as the relative malleability of the P2 amino acid. More importantly, the complex structures of EV71 and CVA16 3Cs with rupintrivir, a specific human rhinovirus (HRV) 3C protease inhibitor, were solved. These structures reveal a half-closed S2 subsite and a size-reduced S1' subsite that limit the access of the P1' group of rupintrivir to both enzymes, explaining the reported low inhibition activity of the compound toward EV71 and CVA16. In conclusion, the detailed characterization of both proteases in this study could direct us to a proposal for rational design of EV71/CVA16 3C inhibitors.     

A norovirus protease structure provides insights into active and substrate binding site integrity

Norovirus 3C-like proteases are crucial to proteolytic processing of norovirus polyproteins. We determined the crystal structure of the 3C-like protease from Chiba virus, a norovirus, at 2.8-A resolution. An active site including Cys139 and His30 is present, as is a hydrogen bond network that stabilizes the active site conformation. In the oxyanion hole backbone, a structural difference was observed probably upon substrate binding. A peptide substrate/enzyme model shows that several interactions between the two components are critical for substrate binding and that the S1 and S2 sites appropriately accommodate the substrate P1 and P2 residues, respectively. Knowledge of the structure and a previous mutagenesis study allow us to correlate proteolysis and structure.     

Functional interpretation and structural insights of Arabidopsis lyrata cytochrome P450 CYP71A13 involved in auxin synthesis

Cytochrome P450 CYP71A13 of Arabidopsis lyrata is a heme protein involved in biosynthesis of indole-3-acetonitrile which leads to the formation of indolyl-3-acetic acid. It catalyzes a unique reaction: formation of a carbon-nitrogen triple bond and dehydration of indolyl-3-acetaldoxime. Homology model of this 57 kDa polypeptide revealed that the heme existed between H-helix and J- helix in the hydrophobic pocket, although both helixes are involved in catalytic activity, where Gly305 and Thr308, 311 of H- helix were involved in its stabilization. The substrate indole-3-acetaldoxime was tightly fitted into the substrate pocket with the aromatic ring being surrounded by amino acid residues creating a hydrophobic environment. The smaller size of the substrate binding pocket in cytochrome P450 CYP71A13 was due to the bulkiness of the two amino acid residues Phe182 and Trp315 pointing into the substrate binding cavity. The apparent role of the heme in cytochrome P450 CYP71A13 was to tether the substrate in the catalysis by indole-3-acetaldoxime dehydratase. Since the crystal structure of cytochrome P450 CYP71A13 has not yet been solved, the modeled structure revealed mechanism of substrate recognition and catalysis.     

HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶与Faldaprevir类似物的分子识别机制及其复合物运动模式

Faldaprevir类似物(Faldaprevir analogue molecule,FAM)能有效抑制HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶的催化活性,是一种潜在抗HCV先导化合物。通过生物信息学统计分析了已报道的HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶晶体结构,得到了FAM-HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶晶体结构。对FAM-HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶复合物进行了20.4 ns的分子动力学模拟,重点从氢键和结合自由能两个角度分析了二者分子识别中的关键残基及结合驱动力。氢键和范德华力是促使FAM特异性结合到蛋白V132?S139、F154?D168、D79?D81和V55的活性口袋中的主要驱动力,这与实验数据较为吻合。耐药性突变实验分析了R155K、D168E/V和V170T定点突变对FAM分子识别的影响,为可能存在的FAM耐药性提供了分子依据。最后,用自由能曲面和构象聚类两个方法探讨了体系的构象变化,给出体系的4种优势构象,为后续的基于HCV NS3/4A蛋白酶结构的Faldaprevir类似物抑制剂分子设计提供一定的理论帮助。     

Interaction of the factor XIII activation peptide with alpha -thrombin. Crystal structure of its enzyme-substrate analog complex

The serine protease thrombin proteolytically activates blood coagulation factor XIII by cleavage at residue Arg(37); factor XIII in turn cross-links fibrin molecules and gives mechanical stability to the blood clot. The 2.0-A resolution x-ray crystal structure of human alpha-thrombin bound to the factor XIII-(28-37) decapeptide has been determined. This structure reveals the detailed atomic level interactions between the factor XIII activation peptide and thrombin and provides the first high resolution view of this functionally important part of the factor XIII molecule. A comparison of this structure with the crystal structure of fibrinopeptide A complexed with thrombin highlights several important determinants of thrombin substrate interaction. First, the P1 and P2 residues must be compatible with the geometry and chemistry of the S1 and S2 specificity sites in thrombin. Second, a glycine in the P5 position is necessary for the conserved substrate conformation seen in both factor XIII-(28-37) and fibrinopeptide A. Finally, the hydrophobic residues, which occupy the aryl binding site of thrombin determine the substrate conformation further away from the catalytic residues. In the case of factor XIII-(28-37), the aryl binding site is shared by hydrophobic residues P4 (Val(34)) and P9 (Val(29)). A bulkier residue in either of these sites may alter the substrate peptide conformation.     

The interdomain interface in bifunctional enzyme protein 3/4A (NS3/4A) regulates protease and helicase activities

Hepatitis C (HCV) protein 3/4A (NS3/4A) is a bifunctional enzyme comprising two separate domains with protease and helicase activities, which are essential for viral propagation. Both domains are stable and have enzymatic activity separately, and the relevance and implications of having protease and helicase together as a single protein remains to be explored. Altered in vitro activities of isolated domains compared with the full‐length NS3/4A protein suggest the existence of interdomain communication. The molecular mechanism and extent of this communication was investigated by probing the domain–domain interface observed in HCV NS3/4A crystal structures. We found in molecular dynamics simulations that the two domains of NS3/4A are dynamically coupled through the interface. Interestingly, mutations designed to disrupt this interface did not hinder the catalytic activities of either domain. In contrast, substrate cleavage and DNA unwinding by these mutants were mostly enhanced compared with the wild‐type protein. Disrupting the interface did not significantly alter RNA unwinding activity; however, the full‐length protein was more efficient in RNA unwinding than the isolated protease domain, suggesting a more direct role in RNA processing independent of the interface. Our findings suggest that HCV NS3/4A adopts an “extended” catalytically active conformation, and interface formation acts as a switch to regulate activity. We propose a unifying model connecting HCV NS3/4A conformational states and protease and helicase function, where interface formation and the dynamic interplay between the two enzymatic domains of HCV NS3/4A potentially modulate the protease and helicase activities in vivo.     

Identification of the active conformation and the importance of length of the flexible loop 72-83 in regulating the conformational change of undecaprenyl pyrophosphate synthase

Increasing evidence has shown that intrinsic disorder of proteins plays a key role in their biological functions. In the case of undecaprenyl pyrophosphate synthase (UPPs), which catalyzes the chain elongation of farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP) to undecaprenyl pyrophosphate via eight consecutive condensation reactions with isopentenyl pyrophosphate, a highly flexible loop 72-83 was previously linked to protein conformational change required for catalysis [Chen, Y. H., Chen, A. P.-C., Chen, C. T., Wang, A. H.-J., and Liang, P. H., (2002) J. Biol. Chem. 277, 7369-7376]. The crystal structure and fluorescence studies suggested that the alpha3 helix connected to the loop moves toward the active site when the substrate is bound. To identify the active conformation and study the role of the loop for conformational change, the UPPs mutants with amino acids inserted into or deleted from the loop were examined. The inserted mutant with extra Ala residues fails to display the intrinsic fluorescence quenching upon FPP binding, and its crystal structure reveals only the open form. These phenomena appear to be different from the wild-type enzyme in which open and closed conformers were observed and suggest that the extended loop fails to pull the alpha3 helix and/or the extra amino acids in the loop cause steric hindrance on the alpha3 helix movement. The loop-shortening mutants with deletion of V82 and S83 or S72 also adopt an open conformation with the loop stretched, although they show decreased intrinsic fluorescence with FPP bound, similar to that seen in the wild-type enzyme. We conclude that the closed conformation is apparently the active conformation. Change of the length of the loop 72-83 impairs the ability of conformational change and causes remarkably lower activity of UPPs.     

Self-inhibited State of Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus (VEEV) nsP2 Cysteine Protease: A Crystallographic and Molecular Dynamics Analysis

The Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) belongs to the Togaviridae family and is pathogenic to both humans and equines. The VEEV non-structural protein 2 (nsP2) is a cysteine protease (nsP2pro) that processes the polyprotein and thus it is a drug target for inhibitor discovery. The atomic structure of the VEEV nsP2 catalytic domain was previously characterized by both X-ray crystallography and computational studies. A modified nsP2pro harboring a N475A mutation in the N terminus was observed to exhibit an unexpected conformation: the N-terminal residues bind to the active site, mimicking binding of a substrate. The large conformational change of the N terminus was assumed to be induced by the N475A mutation, as N475 has an important role in stabilization of the N terminus and the active site. This conformation was first observed in the N475A mutant, but we also found it while determining a crystal structure of the catalytically active nsP2pro containing the wild-type N475 active site residue and K741A/K767A surface entropy reduction mutations. This suggests that the N475A mutation is not a prerequisite for self-inhibition. Here, we describe a high resolution (1.46 Å) crystal structure of a truncated nsP2pro (residues 463–785, K741A/K767A) and analyze the structure further by molecular dynamics to study the active and self-inhibited conformations of nsP2pro and its N475A mutant. A comparison of the different conformations of the N-terminal residues sheds a light on the interactions that play an important role in the stabilization of the enzyme.     

Ligand-bound structures of the dengue virus protease reveal the active conformation

Dengue is a mosquito-borne viral hemorrhagic disease that is a major threat to human health in tropical and subtropical regions. Here we report crystal structures of a peptide covalently bound to dengue virus serotype 3 (DENV-3) protease as well as the serine-protease inhibitor aprotinin bound to the same enzyme. These structures reveal, for the first time, a catalytically active, closed conformation of the DENV protease. In the presence of the peptide, the DENV-3 protease forms the closed conformation in which the hydrophilic β-hairpin region of NS2B wraps around the NS3 protease core, in a manner analogous to the structure of West Nile virus (WNV) protease. Our results confirm that flavivirus proteases form the closed conformation during proteolysis, as previously proposed for WNV. The current DENV-3 protease structures reveal the detailed interactions at the P4' to P3 sites of the substrate. The new structural information explains the sequence preference, particularly for long basic residues in the nonprime side, as well as the difference in substrate specificity between the WNV and DENV proteases at the prime side. Structural analysis of the DENV-3 protease-peptide complex revealed a pocket that is formed by residues from NS2B and NS3; this pocket also exists in the WNV NS2B/NS3 protease structure and could be targeted for potential antivirus development. The structural information presented in the current study is invaluable for the design of specific inhibitors of DENV protease.     

Structural studies of mutant forms of the PQQ‐forming enzyme PqqC in the presence of product and substrate

Pyrroloquinoline quinone [4,5‐dihydro‐4,5‐dioxo‐1H‐pyrrolo[2,3‐f]quinoline‐2,7,9‐tricarboxylic acid (PQQ)] is a bacterial cofactor in numerous alcohol dehydrogenases including methanol dehydrogenase and glucose dehydrogenase. Its biosynthesis in Klebsiella pneumoniae is facilitated by six genes, pqqABCDEF and proceeds by an unknown pathway. PqqC is one of two metal free oxidases of known structure and catalyzes the last step of PQQ biogenesis which involves a ring closure and an eight‐electron oxidation of the substrate [3a‐(2‐amino‐2‐carboxyethyl)‐4,5‐dioxo‐4,5,6,7,8,9‐hexahydroquinoline‐7,9‐dicarboxylic acid (AHQQ)]. PqqC has 14 conserved active site residues, which have previously been shown to be in close contact with bound PQQ. Herein, we describe the structures of three PqqC active site variants, H154S, Y175F, and the double mutant R179S/Y175S. The H154S crystal structure shows that, even with PQQ bound, the enzyme is still in the “open” conformation with helices α5b and α6 unfolded and the active site solvent accessible. The Y175F PQQ complex crystal structure reveals the closed conformation indicating that Y175 is not required for the conformational change. The R179S/Y175S AHQQ complex crystal structure is the most mechanistically informative, indicating an open conformation with a reaction intermediate trapped in the active site. The intermediate seen in R179S/Y175S is tricyclic but nonplanar, implying that it has not undergone oxidation. These studies implicate a stepwise process in which substrate binding leads to the generation of the closed protein conformation, with the latter playing a critical role in O₂ binding and catalysis. Proteins 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Structures of apo- and holo-tyrosine phenol-lyase reveal a catalytically critical closed conformation and suggest a mechanism for activation by K+ ions

Tyrosine phenol-lyase, a tetrameric pyridoxal 5'-phosphate dependent enzyme, catalyzes the reversible hydrolytic cleavage of L-tyrosine to phenol and ammonium pyruvate. Here we describe the crystal structure of the Citrobacter freundii holoenzyme at 1.9 A resolution. The structure reveals a network of protein interactions with the cofactor, pyridoxal 5'-phosphate, and details of coordination of the catalytically important K+ ion. We also present the structure of the apoenzyme at 1.85 A resolution. Both structures were determined using crystals grown at pH 8.0, which is close to the pH of the maximal enzymatic activity (8.2). Comparison of the apoenzyme structure with the one previously determined at pH 6.0 reveals significant differences. The data suggest that the decrease of the enzymatic activity at pH 6.0 may be caused by conformational changes in the active site residues Tyr71, Tyr291, and Arg381 and in the monovalent cation binding residue Glu69. Moreover, at pH 8.0 we observe two different active site conformations: open, which was characterized before, and closed, which is observed for the first time in beta-eliminating lyases. In the closed conformation a significant part of the small domain undergoes an extraordinary motion of up to 12 A toward the large domain, closing the active site cleft and bringing the catalytically important Arg381 and Phe448 into the active site. The closed conformation allows rationalization of the results of previous mutational studies and suggests that the observed active site closure is critical for the course of the enzymatic reaction and for the enzyme's specificity toward its physiological substrate. Finally, the closed conformation allows us to model keto(imino)quinonoid, the key transition intermediate.     

Crystal structure of the E230Q mutant of cAMP-dependent protein kinase reveals an unexpected apoenzyme conformation and an extended N-terminal A helix

Glu230, one of the acidic residues that cluster around the active site of the catalytic subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase, plays an important role in substrate recognition. Specifically, its side chain forms a direct salt-bridge interaction with the substrate's P-2 Arg. Previous studies showed that mutation of Glu230 to Gln (E230Q) caused significant decreases not only in substrate binding but also in the rate of phosphoryl transfer. To better understand the importance of Glu230 for structure and function, we solved the crystal structure of the E230Q mutant at 2.8 A resolution. Surprisingly, the mutant preferred an open conformation with no bound ligands observed, even though the crystals were grown in the presence of MgATP and the inhibitor peptide, IP20. This is in contrast to the wild-type protein that, under the same conditions, prefers the closed conformation of a ternary complex. The structure highlights the importance of the electrostatic surface not only for substrate binding and catalysis, but also for the mechanism for closing the active site cleft. This surface mutation clearly disrupts the recognition and binding of substrate peptide so that the enzyme prefers an open conformation that cannot trap ATP. This is consistent with the reinforcing concepts of conformational dynamics and the synergistic binding of ATP and substrate peptide. Another unusual feature of the structure is the observation of the entire N terminus (Gly1-Thr32) assumes an extended alpha-helix conformation. Finally, based on temperature factors, this mutant structure is more stable than the wild-type C-subunit in the apo state.     

Structural locations and functional roles of new subsites S5, S6, and S7 in memapsin 2 (beta-secretase)

Memapsin 2 (beta-secretase) is the membrane-anchored aspartic protease that initiates the cleavage of beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP), leading to the production of amyloid-beta (Abeta), a major factor in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. The active site of memapsin 2 has been shown, with kinetic data and crystal structures, to bind to eight substrate residues (P(4)-P(4)'). We describe here that the addition of three substrate residues from P(7) to P(5) strongly influences the hydrolytic activity by memapsin 2 and these subsites prefer hydrophobic residues, especially tryptophan. A crystal structure of memapsin 2 complexed with a statine-based inhibitor spanning P(10)-P(4)' revealed the binding positions of P(5)-P(7) residues. Kinetic studies revealed that the addition of these substrate residues contributes to the decrease in K(m) and increase in k(cat) values, suggesting that these residues contribute to both substrate recognition and transition-state binding. The crystal structure of a new inhibitor, OM03-4 (K(i) = 0.03 nM), bound to memapsin 2 revealed the interaction of a tryptophan with the S(6) subsite of the protease.     

Mechanism of substrate recognition by drug-resistant human immunodeficiency virus type 1 protease variants revealed by a novel structural intermediate

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) protease processes and cleaves the Gag and Gag-Pol polyproteins, allowing viral maturation, and therefore is an important target for antiviral therapy. Ligand binding occurs when the flaps open, allowing access to the active site. This flexibility in flap geometry makes trapping and crystallizing structural intermediates in substrate binding challenging. In this study, we report two crystal structures of two HIV-1 protease variants bound with their corresponding nucleocapsid-p1 variant. One of the flaps in each of these structures exhibits an unusual "intermediate" conformation. Analysis of the flap-intermediate and flap-closed crystal structures reveals that the intermonomer flap movements may be asynchronous and that the flap which wraps over the P3 to P1 (P3-P1) residues of the substrate might close first. This is consistent with our hypothesis that the P3-P1 region is crucial for substrate recognition. The intermediate conformation is conserved in both the wild-type and drug-resistant variants. The structural differences between the variants are evident only when the flaps are closed. Thus, a plausible structural model for the adaptability of HIV-1 protease to recognize substrates in the presence of drug-resistant mutations has been proposed.