Magic angle spinning NMR spectroscopy guided atomistic characterization of structure and dynamics in HIV-1 protein assemblies

Since its discovery, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has been an intense subject of research. Several biophysical methodologies have aided towards understanding of the viral lifecycle and infectivity. Magic angle spinning (MAS) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy has played a pivotal role in several key findings, providing atomistic details about the viral particles. These contributions have been made owing to tremendous advancements in NMR instrumentation, development of novel experiments and hybrid approaches combining NMR and computational methodologies. In this review, we highlight some advances made towards characterization of structure and dynamics in HIV-1 assemblies by MAS NMR spectroscopy. These findings have established MAS NMR spectroscopy is a promising methodology to investigate large biological assemblies such as viral particles and HIV-1 protein assemblies.