# De novo fatty acid biosynthesis and HIV replication

> **NIH NIH R21** · OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $191,023

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
HIV-1 commandeers host metabolism to create a cellular environment favorable to viral replication. We have
recently discovered that mammalian fatty acid synthase (FASN) levels increase following HIV-1 infection, and
that FASN activity is required for a late step of HIV replication that is subsequent to viral protein expression (e.g.
protein trafficking, virion assembly, or virion release). The goal of our proposed research is to determine how
FASN activity and resulting de novo fatty acid (FA) production affect a late stage of HIV-1 replication. The product
of FASN, palmitate, is a long chain FA that has multiple cellular roles, and can also be trimmed into myristate or
extended into other long chain FAs. Long chain FAs have many cellular functions, including roles in membrane
structure, energy storage, and regulation of subcellular protein localization. This proposal focuses on two
plausible FASN-mediated mechanisms that could interrupt a late stage in the HIV-1 replication cycle: production
of lipids for post-translational modification of proteins (AIM 1), and generation of FA to reconfigure cellular lipid
composition (AIM 2). If HIV-1 requires FASN activity to facilitate viral protein trafficking or virion assembly, we
will have revealed a fundamental mechanism that could explain why many enveloped viruses require FASN
activity to replicate.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10190804
- **Project number:** 5R21AI141037-02
- **Recipient organization:** OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** JESSE J KWIEK
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $191,023
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-06-15 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10190804

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10190804, De novo fatty acid biosynthesis and HIV replication (5R21AI141037-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10190804. Licensed CC0.

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