Mechanisms of innate antiviral immunity
The research group, headed by Prof. Dr. Daniel Sauter, investigates the interactions of HIV, SARS-CoV-2 and other (zoonotic) viral pathogens with the immune responses of their respective hosts.

Welcome

We are fascinated by RNA viruses and the immune responses against them. That’s why we study how both of them interact with each other. Although RNA viruses, such as HIV or SARS-CoV-2, frequently encode only a small number of genes, they are probably the most successful pathogens on this planet. Their success depends on a plethora of sophisticated mechanisms to evade or counteract the immune responses of their hosts. Since the number of viral proteins encoded by each virus is limited, most viral proteins mediate an astonishing number of different functions. Although may functions have been described in principle, most underlying biochemical mechanisms are not completely understood. In addition, we are convinced that more viral evasion mechanisms remain to be discovered.  With our research, we thus aim to understand how viruses and their hosts co-evolve and to identify viral features that enable successful spread of viruses in the human population. 

Interestingly, some RNA viruses even got fixed in our genomes. These endogenous retroviruses represent about 8% of our DNA. Thus, all of us are partly viral! The fact that these viral remnants have not been lost over millions of years of evolution suggests that they may somehow benefit our health or even help us fight viral infections today. With our research, we aim to find out whether this is really the case. 

Sounds interesting? Just contact us!

Contact

Prof. Dr. Daniel Sauter

Prof. Dr. Daniel Sauter

Heisenberg-Professor

Phone number: 07071 29-80177

Fax number: 07071 29-5790

E-mail address: daniel.sauter@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Publications: Publications

Personenprofil: Mehr zur Person

Western blot
Corinna Bay

Technician

E-mail address: Corinna.Bay@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Sharmeen Fayyaz

PostDoc/Visting scientist

E-mail address: Sharmeen.Fayyaz@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Isabell Haussmann

Technician

E-mail address: Isabell.Haussmann@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Dr. Kristina Hopfensperger

Junior Group Leader

E-mail address: Kristina.Hopfensperger@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Prof. Dr. Zinaida Klestova

Guest Professor

E-mail address: Zinaida.Klestova@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Jan Eric Kolberg

MD student

E-mail address: jan-eric.kolberg@student.uni-tuebingen.de

Dr. Rishikesh Lotke

PostDoc

E-mail address: Rishikesh.Lotke@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Martin Müller

PhD student

E-mail address: M.Mueller@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Daksha Munot

PhD student

E-mail address: Daksha.Navneetkumar.Munot@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Moritz Petersen

MD student

E-mail address: Moritz.Petersen@med.uni-tuebingen.de

Prof. Dr. Daniel Sauter

Group Leader

E-mail address: Daniel.sauter@med.-uni-tuebingen.de

Paul Stark

MD student

E-mail address: paul.stark@student.uni-tuebingen.de

Research Projects

Cells are equipped with numerous antiviral factors that interfere with essentially all steps of the viral replication cycle. While they constitute an important first line of defense and protect us against many invading (emerging) viral pathogens, some viruses have evolved effective mechanisms to evade or counteract these antiviral factors. One main focus of our research is the identification and characterization of previously undescribed host proteins that suppress viral replication. For example, our lab recently identified guanylate-binding proteins 2 and 5 (GBP2/5) as two interferon-inducible proteins that exert broad antiviral activity by inhibiting the proteolytic maturation of viral glycoproteins (Braun et al., 2019). Since GBP2 and GBP5 do not directly target viral pathogens, but inhibit the cellular protease furin, we are currently investigating potential off-target effects of this antiviral mechanism in infected cells.

The main model organisms of our lab are retroviruses, such as human and simian immunodeficiency viruses (HIV‑1, HIV-2, SIVs), as well as coronaviruses (e.g. SARS-CoV-2). Despite their limited genome sizes, they manage to replicate and spread efficiently in their hosts. This is partly because many viral proteins are multifunctional and target several components of the antiviral immune response. For example, research in our lab revealed that the viral protein U (Vpu) of HIV-1 and SIV not only increases virus release by counteracting the restriction factor tetherin, but exerts much broader immuno-suppressive effects by inhibiting the activation of the transcription factor NF-κB (Langer et al., 2019; Hotter et al., 2017). In the absence of Vpu, NF-κB drives the expression of interferons and other antiviral factors. Furthermore, Vpu proteins of different groups of HIV-1 and several SIV species decrease the amount of HLA-C at the surface of infected cells to evade killing by natural killer cells (Hopfensperger et al., 2020). Intriguingly, the second human immunodeficiency virus, HIV-2, that naturally lacks a vpu gene has evolved an independent mechanism to decrease HLA-C surface levels involving the viral infectivity factor Vif (Hopfensperger et al., 2020). Our current research aims at investigating how different coronaviral proteins modulate HLA levels and suppress interferon-mediated immune responses in infected cells.

Due to the ongoing tug-of-war between viruses and their hosts, antiviral host factors are among the fastest evolving proteins. As a result, they are only poorly conserved, and many of them pose important barriers to successful cross-species transmission events of viral pathogens. For example, our research revealed that the host restriction factor tetherin constitutes an important barrier to zoonotic transmission of simian immunodeficiency viruses to humans (Sauter et al., 2009; Sauter et al., 2010; Heusinger et al., 2018; Sauter and Kirchhoff, 2019). Nevertheless, some immunodeficiency viruses managed to adapt to their new human host and evolved mechanisms to efficiently counteract the human orthologue of tetherin. These viruses spread efficiently in the human population, resulting in the current HIV/AIDS pandemic. Thus, our findings provide important insights into the determinants of successful viral spread of zoonotic viruses in humans.

The human genome contains hundreds of thousands of so-called endogenous retroviral elements that represent remnants of past encounters with once infectious retroviruses. Although human endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) fail to produce infectious viral particles, they play key roles in several physiological and pathophysiological processes. While some of them may exert detrimental effects if their transcription is not effectively suppressed, others have been hijacked by the human organism. For example, accumulating evidence suggests that endogenous retroviral promoter and enhancer elements regulate the expression of a variety of cellular genes. In line with this, we could recently demonstrate that expression of the broadly antiviral factors GBP2 and GBP5 is driven by two endogenous retroviral promoters. Intriguingly, these retroviral promoter elements are activated in HIV-1 infected T cells (Srinivasachar Badarinarayan et al., 2020). Thus, our immune system exploits retroviral fossils in our DNA to regulate innate immune responses against HIV-1 and other viral pathogens.

Selected Publications

  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2021. Less is more: biased loss of CpG dinucleotides strengthens antiviral immunity. PLOS Biology 19(9):e3001353
  • Wettstein L, Immenschuh P, Weil T, Conzelmann C, Almeida-Hernández Y, Hoffmann M, Kempf A, Nehlmeier I, Lotke R, Petersen M, Stenger S, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D, Pöhlmann S, Sanchez-Garcia E, Jan Münch J. Native and activated antithrombin inhibits TMPRSS2 activity and SARS-CoV-2 infection. In press. Journal of Medical Virology
  • Fittje P, Hölzemer A, Garcia-Beltran WF, Niehrs A, Vollmers S, Martrus G, Körner C, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D, Altfeld M. 2022. HIV-1 Nef-mediated downregulation of CD155 results in viral restriction by KIR2DL5+ NK cells. PLOS Pathogens 18(6):e1010572
  • Zhao Z, Fagerlund R, Tossavainen H, Hopfensperger K, Lotke R, Srinivasachar Badarinarayan S, Kirchhoff F, Permi P, Sato K, Sauter D, Saksela K. 2021. Evolutionary plasticity of SH3 domain binding by Nef proteins of the HIV 1/SIVcpz lentiviral lineage. PLOS Pathogens 17(11):e1009728
  • Bosso M, Stürzel CM, Kmiec D, Srinivasachar Badarinarayan S, Braun E, Ito J, Sato K, Hahn BH, Sparrer K, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2021. Acquisition of an additional NF-κB site allows HIV-1 subtype C to evade restriction by nuclear PYHIN proteins. Cell Reports 36(12):109735
  • Prelli Bozzo C, Nchioua R, Volcic M, Koepke L, Krüger J, Schütz D, Heller S, Stuerzel CM, Kmiec D, Conzelmann C, Müller JA, Zech F, Braun E, Groß R, Wettstein L, Weil T, Weiß J, Diofano F, Rodriguez Alfonso A, Wiese S, Sauter D, Münch J, Goffinet C, Catanese A, Schön M, Boeckers T, Stenger S, Sato K, Just S, Kleger A, Sparrer KM§, Kirchhoff F§. 2021. IFITM proteins promote SARS-CoV-2 infection and are targets for virus inhibition in vitro. Nature Communications 12(1):4584
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2021. Evolutionary conflicts and adverse effects of antiviral factors. eLife 10:e65243
  • Srinivasachar Badarinarayan S, Sauter D. 2021. Switching Sides: How Endogenous Retroviruses Protect us from Viral Infections. J Virol
  • Hayn M, Hirschenberger M, Koepke L, Nchioua R, Straub JH, Klute S, Hunszinger V, Zech F, Prelli Bozzo C, Aftab W, Hønholt Christensen M, Conzelmann C, Müller JA, Srinivasachar Badarinarayan S, Stürzel CM, Forne I, Stenger S, Conzelmann KK, Münch J, Schmidt FI, Sauter D, Imhof A, Kirchhoff F, Sparrer KMJ. 2021. Systematic Functional Analysis of SARS-CoV-2 Proteins Uncovers Viral Innate Immune Antagonists and Remaining Vulnerabilities. Cell Reports
  • Cui W, Braun E, Wang W, Tang J, Zheng Y, Slater B, Li N, Chen C, Liu Q, Wang B, Li X, Duan Y, Xiao Y, Ti R, Hotter D, Ji X, Zhang L, Cui J, Xiong Y, Sauter D, Wang Z, Kirchhoff F, Yang H. 2021. Structural Basis for GTP-induced Dimerization and Antiviral Function of Guanylate-binding Proteins. PNAS 118 (15) e2022269118
  • Kimura I, Konno Y, Uriu K, Hopfensperger K, Sauter D, Nakagawa S, Sato K. 2021. Sarbecovirus ORF6 proteins hamper the induction of interferon signaling. Cell Reports 34(13):108916
  • Kaiser LM, Harms M, Sauter D, Rawat VPS, Glitscher M, Hildt E, Tews D, Hunter Z, Münch J, Buske C. 2021. Targeting of CXCR4 by the naturally occurring CXCR4 antagonist EPI-X4 in Waldenström’s Macroglobulinemia. Cancers 13(4), 826
  • Nchioua R, Kmiec D, Müller J, Conzelmann C, Groß R, Swanson C, Neil S, Stenger S, Sauter D, Münch J, Sparrer K, Kirchhoff F. 2020. SARS-CoV-2 is restricted by ZAP despite preadaptation to the low CpG environment in humans. mBio 11(5):e01930-20
  • Srinivasachar Badarinarayan S, Shcherbakova I, Langer S, Koepke L, Preising A, Hotter D, Kirchhoff F, Sparrer KMJ, Schotta G, Sauter D. 2020. HIV-1 infection activates endogenous retroviral promoters regulating antiviral gene expression. Nucleic Acids Research gkaa832
  • Konno Y, Kimura I, Uriu K, Fukushi M, Irie T, Koyanagi Y, Sauter D, Gifford RJ, USFQ-COVID19 consortium, Nakagawa S, Sato K. 2020. SARS-CoV-2 ORF3b is a potent interferon antagonist whose activity is further increased by a naturally occurring elongation variant. Cell Reports 32(12):108185
  • Bosso M, Prelli-Bozzo C, Hotter D, Volcic M, Stürzel CM, Rammelt A, Ni Y, Urban S, Becker M, Schelhaas M, Wittmann S, Christensen MH, Schmidt FI, Gramberg T, Sparrer KMJ, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2020. Nuclear PYHIN proteins target the host transcription factor Sp1 thereby restricting HIV-1 in human macrophages and CD4+ T cells. PLOS Pathog. 16(8):e1008752
  • Hopfensperger K, Richard J, Stürzel CM, Bibollet-Ruche F, Apps R, Leoz M, Plantier JC, Hahn BH, Finzi A, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2020. Convergent evolution of HLA-C down-modulation in HIV-1 and HIV-2
  • Volcic M, Sparrer KMJ, Koepke L, Hotter D, Sauter D, Stürzel CM, Scherer M, Stamminger T, Hofmann TG, Arhel NJ, Wiesmüller L, Kirchhoff F. 2020. Vpu modulates DNA repair to suppress innate sensing and hyper-integration of HIV-1. Nature Microbiology. 5(10):1247-1261
  • Muench J, Groß R, Bauer R, Krüger F, Rücker-Braun E, Olari LR, Ständker L, Preising N, Rodriguez AA, Conzelman C, Gerbl F, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F, Hagemann B, Gačanin J, Weil T, Ruiz-Blanco J, Sanchez Garcia E, Forssmann WG, Mankertz A, Santibanez S, Stenger S, Walther P, Wiese S, Spellerberg B. 2020. A placenta derived C-terminal fragment of β-hemoglobin with combined antibacterial and antiviral activity. Frontiers in Microbiology. 11:508
  • Joas S, Sauermann U, Roshani B, Klippert A, Mätz-Rensing K, Stolte-Leeb N, Heigele A, Tharp GK, Gupta PM, Nelson S, Bosinger S, Parodi L, Giavedoni L, Silvestri G, Sauter D, Stahl-Hennig C, Kirchhoff F. 2020. Nef-mediated CD3-TCR downmodulation dampens acute inflammation and promotes SIV immune evasion. Cell Reports 30(7):2261-2274
  • Kmiec D, Nchioua R, Sherrill-Mix S, Stürzel CM, Heusinger E, Braun E, Gondim MVP, Hotter D, Sparrer K, Hahn BH, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2020. CpG frequency in the 5’ third of the env gene determines ZAP sensitivity of primary HIV-1 strains. mBio 11(1)
  • Hopfensperger K, Sauter D. 2020. Decreased, Deformed, Defective-How HIV-1 Vpu Targets Peroxisomes. mBio 11(3):e00967-20
  • Thans TVS, Akko JI, Niehrs A, Garcia-Beltran WF, Richert L, Stürzel CM, Ford CT, Li H, Ochsenbauer C, Kappes JC, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F, Martrus G, Sauter D, Altfeld M, Hölzemer A. 2019. Primary HIV-1 strains use Nef to downmodulate HLA-E surface expression. J Virol. 93
  • Prévost J, Pickering S, Mumby M, Medjahed H, Gendron-Lepage G, Delgado G, Dirk B, Dikeakos J, Stuerzel C, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F, Bibollet-Ruche F, Hahn B, Dubé M, Kaufmann D, Neil S, Finzi A, Richard J. 2019. Upregulation of BST-2 by type I IFNs reduce the capacity of Vpu to protect HIV-1-infected cells from NK cell responses. mBio 10(3)
  • Hotter D, Bosso M, Jønsson KL, Krapp C, Stürzel CM, Das A, Littwitz-Salomon E, Berkhout B, Russ A, Wittmann S, Gramberg T, Zheng Y, Martins LJ, Planelles V, Jakobsen MR, Hahn BH, Dittmer U, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2019. IFI16 targets the transcription factor Sp1 to suppress HIV-1 transcription and latency reactivation. Cell Host and Microbe. 25(6):858-872
  • Yamasoba D, Sato K, Ichinose T, Imamura T, Koepke L, Joas S, Reith E, Hotter D, Misawa N, Akaki K, Uehata T, Mino T, Miyamoto S, Noda T, Yamashita A, Standley D, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D, Koyanagi Y, Takeuchi O. 2019. N4BP1 restricts HIV-1 and its inactivation by MALT1 promotes viral reactivation. Nature Microbiology 4(9):1532-1544
  • Braun E, Hotter D, Koepke L, Zech F, Groß R, Sparrer KMJ, Müller JA, Pfaller CK, Heusinger E, Wombacher R, Sutter K, Dittmer U, Winkler M, Simmons G, Jakobsen MR, Conzelmann KK, Pöhlmann S, Münch J, Fackler OT, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2019. Guanylate-binding proteins 2 and 5 exert broad antiviral activity by inhibiting furin-mediated processing of viral envelope proteins. Cell Reports 27(7):2092-2104
  • Langer S, Hammer C, Hopfensperger K, Klein L, Hotter D, De Jesus PD, Herbert KM, Pache L, Smith N, van der Merwe JA, Chanda SK, Fellay J, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2019. HIV-1 Vpu is a potent transcriptional suppressor of NF-κB-elicited antiviral immune responses. eLife 8, e41930
  • Braun E, Sauter D. 2019. Furin-mediated protein processing in infectious diseases and cancer. Clinical & Translational Immunology. 8:e1073
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2019. Key viral adaptations preceding the AIDS pandemic. Cell Host & Microbe 25(1):27-38
  • Landsberg CD, Megger DA, Hotter D, Rückborn MU, Eilbrecht M, Rashidi-Alayijeh J, Howe S, Heinrichs S, Sauter D, Sitek B, Le-Trilling VTK, Trilling M. 2018. A Mass Spectrometry-Based Profiling of Interactomes of Viral DDB1- and Cullin Ubiquitin Ligase-Binding Proteins Reveals NF-κB Inhibitory Activity of the HIV-2-Encoded Vpx. Front Immunol 9:2978
  • Heusinger E, Deppe K, Sette P, Krapp C, Kmiec D, Kluge SF, Marx PA, Apetrei C, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2018. Preadaptation of Simian Immunodeficiency Virus SIVsmm Facilitated Env-Mediated Counteraction of Human Tetherin by Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 2. J Virol 92
  • Joas S, Parrish EH, Gnanadurai CW, Lump E, Stürzel CM, Parrish NF, Learn GH, Sauermann U, Neumann B, Rensing KM, Fuchs D, Billingsley JM, Bosinger SE, Silvestri G, Apetrei C, Huot N, Garcia-Tellez T, Müller-Trutwin M, Hotter D, Sauter D, Stahl-Hennig C, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2018. Species-specific host factors rather than virus-intrinsic virulence determine primate lentiviral pathogenicity. Nat Commun 9:1371
  • Kmiec D, Akbil B, Ananth S, Hotter D, Sparrer KMJ, Stürzel CM, Trautz B, Ayouba A, Peeters M, Yao Z, Stagljar I, Passos V, Zillinger T, Goffinet C, Sauter D, Fackler OT, Kirchhoff F. 2018. SIVcol Nef counteracts SERINC5 by promoting its proteasomal degradation but does not efficiently enhance HIV-1 replication in human CD4+ T cells and lymphoid tissue. PLOS Pathog 14:e1007269
  • Palesch D, Bosinger SE, Tharp GK, Vanderford TH, Paiardini M, Chahroudi A, Johnson ZP, Kirchhoff F, Hahn BH, Norgren RB, Patel NB, Sodora DL, Dawoud RA, Stewart C-B, Seepo SM, Harris RA, Liu Y, Raveendran M, Han Y, English A, Thomas GWC, Hahn MW, Pipes L, Mason CE, Muzny DM, Gibbs RA, Sauter D, Worley K, Rogers J, Silvestri G. 2018. Sooty mangabey genome sequence provides insight into AIDS resistance in a natural SIV host. Nature 553:77–81
  • Yamada E, Nakaoka S, Klein L, Reith E, Langer S, Hopfensperger K, Iwami S, Schreiber G, Kirchhoff F, Koyanagi Y, Sauter D, Sato K. 2018. Human-Specific Adaptations in Vpu Conferring Anti-tetherin Activity Are Critical for Efficient Early HIV-1 Replication In Vivo. Cell Host Microbe 23:110-120
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2018. Multilayered and versatile inhibition of cellular antiviral factors by HIV and SIV accessory proteins. Cytokine Growth Factor Rev 40:3-12
  • Hotter D, Krabbe T, Reith E, Gawanbacht A, Rahm N, Ayouba A, Van Driessche B, Van Lint C, Peeters M, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2017. Primate lentiviruses use at least three alternative strategies to suppress NF-κB-mediated immune activation. PLoS Pathog 13:e1006598
  • Mack K, Starz K, Sauter D, Langer S, Bibollet-Ruche F, Learn GH, Stürzel CM, Leoz M, Plantier J-C, Geyer M, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2017. Efficient Vpu-Mediated Tetherin Antagonism by an HIV-1 Group O Strain. J Virol 91
  • Manrique S, Sauter D, Horenkamp FA, Lülf S, Yu H, Hotter D, Anand K, Kirchhoff F, Geyer M. 2017. Endocytic sorting motif interactions involved in Nef-mediated downmodulation of CD4 and CD3. Nat Commun 8:442
  • Richard J, Prévost J, von Bredow B, Ding S, Brassard N, Medjahed H, Coutu M, Melillo B, Bibollet-Ruche F, Hahn BH, Kaufmann DE, Smith AB, Sodroski J, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F, Gee K, Neil SJ, Evans DT, Finzi A. 2017. BST-2 Expression Modulates Small CD4-Mimetic Sensitization of HIV-1-Infected Cells to Antibody-Dependent Cellular Cytotoxicity. J Virol 91
  • Langer S, Sauter D. 2017. Unusual Fusion Proteins of HIV-1. Front Microbiol 7:2152
  • Vermeire J, Roesch F, Sauter D, Rua R, Hotter D, Van Nuffel A, Vanderstraeten H, Naessens E, Iannucci V, Landi A, Witkowski W, Baeyens A, Kirchhoff F, Verhasselt B. 2016. HIV Triggers a cGAS-Dependent, Vpu- and Vpr-Regulated Type I Interferon Response in CD4+ T Cells. Cell Rep 17:413–424
  • Heigele A, Kmiec D, Regensburger K, Langer S, Peiffer L, Stürzel CM, Sauter D, Peeters M, Pizzato M, Learn GH, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2016. The Potency of Nef-Mediated SERINC5 Antagonism Correlates with the Prevalence of Primate Lentiviruses in the Wild. Cell Host Microbe 20:381–391
  • Kmiec D, Iyer SS, Stürzel CM, Sauter D, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2016. Vpu-Mediated Counteraction of Tetherin Is a Major Determinant of HIV-1 Interferon Resistance. mBio 7(4)
  • Krapp C, Hotter D, Gawanbacht A, McLaren PJ, Kluge SF, Stürzel CM, Mack K, Reith E, Engelhart S, Ciuffi A, Hornung V, Sauter D, Telenti A, Kirchhoff F. 2016. Guanylate Binding Protein (GBP) 5 Is an Interferon-Inducible Inhibitor of HIV-1 Infectivity. Cell Host Microbe 19:504–514
  • McLaren PJ, Gawanbacht A, Pyndiah N, Krapp C, Hotter D, Kluge SF, Götz N, Heilmann J, Mack K, Sauter D, Thompson D, Perreaud J, Rausell A, Munoz M, Ciuffi A, Kirchhoff F, Telenti A. 2015. Identification of potential HIV restriction factors by combining evolutionary genomic signatures with functional analyses. Retrovirology 12:41
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2016. IFITMs: Important Factors In Trans-Mission of HIV-1. Cell Host Microbe 20:407–408
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2016. HIV replication: a game of hide and sense. Curr Opin HIV AIDS 11:173–181
  • Ding S, Veillette M, Coutu M, Prévost J, Scharf L, Bjorkman PJ, Ferrari G, Robinson JE, Stürzel C, Hahn BH, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F, Lewis GK, Pazgier M, Finzi A. 2015. A Highly Conserved Residue of the HIV-1 gp120 Inner Domain Is Important for Antibody-Dependent Cellular Cytotoxicity Responses Mediated by Anti-cluster A Antibodies. J Virol 90:2127–2134
  • Heusinger E, Kluge SF, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2015. Early Vertebrate Evolution of the Host Restriction Factor Tetherin. J Virol 89:12154–12165
  • Bächle SM, Sauter D, Sibitz S, Sandberg JK, Kirchhoff F, Moll M. 2015. Involvement of a C-terminal motif in the interference of primate lentiviral Vpu proteins with CD1d-mediated antigen presentation. Sci Rep 5:9675
  • Langer SM, Hopfensperger K, Iyer SS, Kreider EF, Learn GH, Lee L-H, Hahn BH, Sauter D. 2015. A Naturally Occurring rev1-vpu Fusion Gene Does Not Confer a Fitness Advantage to HIV-1. PloS One 10:e0142118
  • Mlcochova P, Apolonia L, Kluge SF, Sridharan A, Kirchhoff F, Malim MH, Sauter D, Gupta RK. 2015. Immune evasion activities of accessory proteins Vpu, Nef and Vif are conserved in acute and chronic HIV-1 infection. Virology 482:72–78
  • Zirafi O, Kim K-A, Ständker L, Mohr KB, Sauter D, Heigele A, Kluge SF, Wiercinska E, Chudziak D, Richter R, Moepps B, Gierschik P, Vas V, Geiger H, Lamla M, Weil T, Burster T, Zgraja A, Daubeuf F, Frossard N, Hachet-Haas M, Heunisch F, Reichetzeder C, Galzi J-L, Pérez-Castells J, Canales-Mayordomo A, Jiménez-Barbero J, Giménez-Gallego G, Schneider M, Shorter J, Telenti A, Hocher B, Forssmann W-G, Bonig H, Kirchhoff F, Münch J. 2015. Discovery and characterization of an endogenous CXCR4 antagonist. Cell Rep 11:737–747
  • Chen J, Tibroni N, Sauter D, Galaski J, Miura T, Alter G, Mueller B, Haller C, Walker BD, Kirchhoff F, Brumme ZL, Ueno T, Fackler OT. 2015. Modest attenuation of HIV-1 Vpu alleles derived from elite controller plasma. PloS One 10:e0120434
  • Sauter D, Hotter D, Van Driessche B, Stürzel CM, Kluge SF, Wildum S, Yu H, Baumann B, Wirth T, Plantier J-C, Leoz M, Hahn BH, Van Lint C, Kirchhoff F. 2015. Differential regulation of NF-κB-mediated proviral and antiviral host gene expression by primate lentiviral Nef and Vpu proteins. Cell Rep 10:586–599
  • Kluge SF, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2015. SnapShot: antiviral restriction factors. Cell 163:774-774
  • Kluge SF, Mack K, Iyer SS, Pujol FM, Heigele A, Learn GH, Usmani SM, Sauter D, Joas S, Hotter D, Bibollet-Ruche F, Plenderleith LJ, Peeters M, Geyer M, Sharp PM, Fackler OT, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2014. Nef proteins of epidemic HIV-1 group O strains antagonize human tetherin. Cell Host Microbe 16:639–650
  • Sauter D. 2014. Counteraction of the multifunctional restriction factor tetherin. Front Microbiol 5:163
  • Sauter D, Hotter D, Engelhart S, Giehler F, Kieser A, Kubisch C, Kirchhoff F. 2013. A rare missense variant abrogates the signaling activity of tetherin/BST-2 without affecting its effect on virus release. Retrovirology 10:85
  • Hotter D, Kirchhoff F, Sauter D. 2013. HIV-1 Vpu Does Not Degrade Interferon Regulatory Factor 3. J Virol 87:7160–7165
  • Bolduan S, Hubel P, Reif T, Lodermeyer V, Höhne K, Fritz JV, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F, Fackler OT, Schindler M, Schubert U. 2013. HIV-1 Vpu affects the anterograde transport and the glycosylation pattern of NTB-A. Virology 440:190–203
  • Kluge SF, Sauter D, Vogl M, Peeters M, Li Y, Bibollet-Ruche F, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2013. The transmembrane domain of HIV-1 Vpu is sufficient to confer anti-tetherin activity to SIVcpz and SIVgor Vpu proteins: cytoplasmic determinants of Vpu function. Retrovirology 10:32
  • Ploen D, Hafirassou ML, Himmelsbach K, Sauter D, Biniossek ML, Weiss TS, Baumert TF, Schuster C, Hildt E. 2013. TIP47 plays a crucial role in the life cycle of hepatitis C virus. J Hepatol 58:1081–1088
  • Hotter D, Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2013. Emerging role of the host restriction factor tetherin in viral immune sensing. J Mol Biol 425:4956–4964
  • Yolamanova M, Meier C, Shaytan AK, Vas V, Bertoncini CW, Arnold F, Zirafi O, Usmani SM, Müller JA, Sauter D, Goffinet C, Palesch D, Walther P, Roan NR, Geiger H, Lunov O, Simmet T, Bohne J, Schrezenmeier H, Schwarz K, Ständker L, Forssmann W-G, Salvatella X, Khalatur PG, Khokhlov AR, Knowles TPJ, Weil T, Kirchhoff F, Münch J. 2013. Peptide nanofibrils boost retroviral gene transfer and provide a rapid means for concentrating viruses. Nat Nanotechnol 8:130–136
  • Sauter D, Unterweger D, Vogl M, Usmani SM, Heigele A, Kluge SF, Hermkes E, Moll M, Barker E, Peeters M, Learn GH, Bibollet-Ruche F, Fritz JV, Fackler OT, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2012. Human tetherin exerts strong selection pressure on the HIV-1 group N Vpu protein. PLoS Pathog 8:e1003093
  • Götz N, Sauter D, Usmani SM, Fritz JV, Goffinet C, Heigele A, Geyer M, Bibollet-Ruche F, Learn GH, Fackler OT, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2012. Reacquisition of Nef-mediated tetherin antagonism in a single in vivo passage of HIV-1 through its original chimpanzee host. Cell Host Microbe 12:373–380
  • Khalid M, Yu H, Sauter D, Usmani SM, Schmokel J, Feldman J, Gruters RA, van der Ende ME, Geyer M, Rowland-Jones S, Osterhaus AD, Kirchhoff F. 2012. Efficient Nef-mediated downmodulation of TCR-CD3 and CD28 is associated with high CD4+ T cell counts in viremic HIV-2 infection. J Virol 86:4906–4920
  • Laguette N, Rahm N, Sobhian B, Chable-Bessia C, Münch J, Snoeck J, Sauter D, Switzer WM, Heneine W, Kirchhoff F, Delsuc F, Telenti A, Benkirane M. 2012. Evolutionary and functional analyses of the interaction between the myeloid restriction factor SAMHD1 and the lentiviral Vpx protein. Cell Host Microbe 11:205–217
  • Sauter D, Hué S, Petit SJ, Plantier J-C, Towers GJ, Kirchhoff F, Gupta RK. 2011. HIV-1 Group P is unable to antagonize human tetherin by Vpu, Env or Nef. Retrovirology 8:103
  • Schmökel J, Sauter D, Schindler M, Leendertz FH, Bailes E, Dazza M-C, Saragosti S, Bibollet-Ruche F, Peeters M, Hahn BH, Kirchhoff F. 2011. The presence of a vpu gene and the lack of Nef-mediated downmodulation of T cell receptor-CD3 are not always linked in primate lentiviruses. J Virol 85:742–752
  • Sauter D, Kirchhoff F. 2011. Tetherin antagonism by primate lentiviral nef proteins. Curr HIV Res 9:514–523
  • Kühl A, Münch J, Sauter D, Bertram S, Glowacka I, Steffen I, Specht A, Hofmann H, Schneider H, Behrens G, Pöhlmann S. 2010. Calcium-modulating cyclophilin ligand does not restrict retrovirus release. Nat Med 16:155–156
  • Schindler M, Rajan D, Banning C, Wimmer P, Koppensteiner H, Iwanski A, Specht A, Sauter D, Dobner T, Kirchhoff F. 2010. Vpu serine 52 dependent counteraction of tetherin is required for HIV-1 replication in macrophages, but not in ex vivo human lymphoid tissue. Retrovirology 7:1
  • Sauter D, Specht A, Kirchhoff F. 2010. Tetherin: holding on and letting go. Cell 141:392–398
  • Sauter D, Schindler M, Specht A, Landford WN, Münch J, Kim K-A, Votteler J, Schubert U, Bibollet-Ruche F, Keele BF, Takehisa J, Ogando Y, Ochsenbauer C, Kappes JC, Ayouba A, Peeters M, Learn GH, Shaw G, Sharp PM, Bieniasz P, Hahn BH, Hatziioannou T, Kirchhoff F. 2009. Tetherin-driven adaptation of Vpu and Nef function and the evolution of pandemic and nonpandemic HIV-1 strains. Cell Host Microbe 6:409–421
  • Himmelsbach K, Sauter D, Baumert TF, Ludwig L, Blum HE, Hildt E. 2009. New aspects of an anti-tumour drug: sorafenib efficiently inhibits HCV replication. Gut 58:1644–1653
  • Sauter D, Himmelsbach K, Kriegs M, Carvajal Yepes M, Hildt E. 2009. Localization determines function: N-terminally truncated NS5A fragments accumulate in the nucleus and impair HCV replication. J Hepatol 50:861–871