Figure 5.

The flexible loop in SIV_mac239 Nef is required for high viral infectivity. Proviral constructs with mutations in the nef gene were transfected into CEMx174 cells and new virions were tested in a single-round of replication assay. The relative infectivity of the wild-type virus was arbitrarily set to 100%. Comparable ratios of protein expression of Nef and p27^Gag were determined by Western blotting of CEMx174 producer cells. Error bars indicate SEMs from at least three independent experiments.