Structure and Dynamics of the Native HIV-1 Env Trimer

HIV-1/AIDS remains one of the worst pandemics in human history. Despite tremendous efforts, no effective vaccine has been found. Recent reports give new insights into the structure and dynamics of the HIV-1 Env trimer and renew hopes that a better understanding of Env will translate into new vaccine candidates andmore-effective antiretroviral therapies. HIV type 1 (HIV-1) is the etiological agent of the AIDS pan-demic. Over 70 million people have been infected by the vi-rus, and 39 million have died from AIDS-related illness. Anti-retroviral therapy has reached 11 million people and allows many HIV-1-infected people a long life span. However, the life-long chemotherapy is not without side effects, and the cancer bur-den among HIV-1-infected people remains elevated. Despite re-cent hopes that a cure might be possible (1–3), the more that we learn about the viral reservoir, the more that we realize how diffi-cult it will be to eradicate HIV-1 in an infected patient (4–6). Given this situation, a low-cost preventative, such as a vaccine or an adeno-associated virus-delivered prophylactic, might be the preferred response to protect the human population (7). How