Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Entry Glycoproteins Form Complexes before and during Membrane Fusion

Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infects the majority of humans for life and can cause diseases ranging from painful sores to deadly brain inflammation. No vaccines or curative treatments currently exist. Herpesviruses-ubiquitous pathogens that cause persistent infections-have some of the most complex cell entry mechanisms. Entry of the prototypical herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) requires coordinated efforts of 4 glycoproteins, gB, gD, gH, and gL. The current model posits that the glycoproteins do not interact before receptor engagement and that binding of gD to its receptor causes a "cascade" of sequential pairwise interactions, first activating the gH/gL complex and subsequently activating gB, the viral fusogen. But how these glycoproteins interact remains unresolved. Here, using a quantitative split-luciferase approach, we show that pairwise HSV-1 glycoprotein complexes form before fusion, interact at a steady level throughout fusion, and do not depend on the presence of the cellular receptor. Based on our findings, we propose a revised "conformational cascade" model of HSV-1 entry. We hypothesize that all 4 glycoproteins assemble into a complex before fusion, with gH/gL positioned between gD and gB. Once gD binds to a cognate receptor, the proximity of the glycoproteins within this complex allows for efficient transmission of the activating signal from the receptor-activated gD to gH/gL to gB through sequential conformational changes, ultimately triggering the fusogenic refolding of gB. Our results also highlight previously unappreciated contributions of the transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains to glycoprotein interactions and fusion. Similar principles could be at play in other multicomponent viral entry systems, and the split-luciferase approach used here is a powerful tool for investigating protein-protein interactions in these and a variety of other systems. IMPORTANCE Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infects the majority of humans for life and can cause diseases ranging from painful sores to deadly brain inflammation. No vaccines or curative treatments currently exist. HSV-1 infection of target cells requires coordinated efforts of four viral glycoproteins. But how these glycoproteins interact remains unclear. Using a quantitative protein interaction assay, we found that HSV-1 glycoproteins form receptor-independent complexes and interact at a steady level. We propose that the 4 proteins form a complex, which could facilitate transmission of the entry-triggering signal from the receptor-binding component to the membrane fusogen component through sequential conformational changes. Similar principles could be applicable across other multicomponent protein systems. A revised model of HSV-1 entry could facilitate the development of therapeutics targeting this process.