Influenza HA C-terminal tail promotes envelope phosphatidylinositol phosphates (PIPs) of influenza virus and VLP thereof

Abstract

Influenza virus' spike protein is hemagglutinin (HA), a trans-membrane trimeric glycoprotein mediating receptor-binding and membrane fusion. HA features a highly conserved, 12 residue cytoplasmic tail (CT) inside the viral lipid envelope. HA clusters with restricted mobility at the plasma membrane (PM) when expressed in cultured cells, a cluster that co-localizes with PIP2 (2019 Biophysical J. 116:893). Here, we engineered viral-like particles (VLP) with an HA CT deletion mutant to test PIP2 trafficking to the VLP envelope.