Effects of HIV-1 gp41-Derived Virucidal Peptides on Virus-like Lipid Membranes (Biophysical Journal)

Membrane fusion induced by the envelope glycoprotein enables the intracellular replication of HIV-1; hence, this process constitutes a major target for antiretroviral compounds. It has been proposed that peptides having propensity to interact with membrane interfaces might exert broad antiviral activity against enveloped viruses. To test this hypothesis, in this contribution we have analyzed the antiviral effects of peptides derived from the membrane-proximal external region and the transmembrane domain of the envelope glycoprotein subunit gp41, which display different degrees of interfacial hydrophobicity.