Divalent cation-induced conformational changes of influenza virus hemagglutinin

Divalent cations Cu2+ and Zn2+ can prevent the viral growth in mammalian cells during influenza infection, and viral titers decrease significantly on a copper surface. The underlying mechanisms include DNA damage by radicals, modulation of viral protease, M1 or neuraminidase, and morphological changes in viral particles. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying divalent cation-mediated antiviral activities are unclear. An unexpected observation of this study was that a Zn2+ ion is bound by Glu68 and His137 residues at the head regions of two neighboring trimers in the crystal structure of hemagglutinin (HA) derived from A/Thailand/CU44/2006. The binding of Zn2+ at high concentrations induced multimerization of HA and decreased its acid stability. The acid-induced conformational change of HA occurred even at neutral pH in the presence of Zn2+. The fusion of viral and host endosomal membranes requires substantial conformational changes in HA upon exposure to acidic pH. Therefore, our results suggest that binding of Zn2+ may facilitate the conformational changes of HA, analogous to that induced by acidic pH.