Reconstitution of an Infectious Human Endogenous Retrovirus

Abstract

The human genome represents a fossil record of ancient retroviruses that once replicated in the ancestors of contemporary humans. Indeed, approximately 8% of human DNA is composed of sequences that are recognizably retroviral. Despite occasional reports associating human endogenous retrovirus (HERV) expression with human disease, almost all HERV genomes contain obviously inactivating mutations, and none are thought to be capable of replication. Nonetheless, one family of HERVs, namely HERV-K(HML-2), may have replicated in human ancestors less than 1 million years ago. By deriving a consensus sequence, we reconstructed a proviral clone (HERV-K_CON) that likely resembles the progenitor of HERV-K(HML-2) variants that entered the human genome within the last few million years. We show that HERV-K_CON Gag and protease proteins mediate efficient assembly and processing into retrovirus-like particles. Moreover, reporter genes inserted into the HERV-K_CON genome and packaged into HERV-K particles are capable of infectious transfer and stable integration in a manner that requires reverse transcription. Additionally, we show that HERV-K_CON Env is capable of pseudotyping HIV-1 particles and mediating entry into human and nonhuman cell lines. Furthermore, we show that HERV-K_CON is resistant to inhibition by the human retrovirus restriction factors tripartite motif 5α and apolipoprotein B mRNA-editing enzyme, catalytic polypeptide-like (APOBEC) 3G but is inhibited by APOBEC 3F. Overall, the resurrection of this extinct infectious agent in a functional form from molecular fossils should enable studies of the molecular virology and pathogenic potential of this ancient human retrovirus. Retrovirus genomes integrate into the genomes of host cells. If the target cells of a particular retrovirus include germ-line cells, e.g., sperm or egg cells, then retroviral genomes can be inherited like cellular genes. So-called “endogenous” retroviruses have accumulated throughout evolution in the genomes of many organisms, including humans. While all known endogenous retroviruses of modern humans are unable to replicate as retroviruses, the human genome represents a fossil record of ancient retroviruses that once infected our ancestors. In this study, a collection of “dead” endogenous retroviral genomes in modern human DNA was used to deduce the approximate sequence of an ancestral retrovirus, human endogenous retrovirus (HERV)-K, that is now thought to be extinct. A pseudo-ancestral HERV-K DNA sequence was synthesized and used to produce viral proteins and RNA that could reconstitute the HERV-K replication cycle. Thus, the replication and biology of a once-extinct retrovirus can now be studied in the laboratory. Interestingly, reconstituted HERV-K replication experiments, and comparison of the reconstituted HERV-K DNA sequence with the dead HERV-Ks in modern human DNA, suggests that HERV-K may have been extinguished in humans in part by host defenses that induce mutation of retroviral DNA and that the reconstitution of the pseudo-ancestral HERV-K reversed these changes.