ZNF10 inhibits HIV-1 LTR activity through interaction with NF-κB and Sp1 binding motifs

Abstract Kruppel-associated box-containing zinc finger (KRAB-ZNF) genes constitute the single largest gene family of transcriptional repressors in the genomes of higher organisms. In this study, we isolated 52 cDNA clones of KRAB-ZFPs from U1 cell lines and screened them to identify which were capable of regulating HIV-1 gene expression. We identified 5 KRAB-ZFPs that suppressed ≥50% of HIV-1 LTR. Of the 5 identified KRAB-ZFPs, the expression of ZNF10 significantly enhanced the transcriptional repression activity of the LTR compared with other ZNFs. In addition, the depletion of endogenous ZNF10 led to the activation of HIV-1 LTR. The repressor activity of ZNF10 was required for TRIM28, SETDB1 and HP1-gamma binding. These results indicate that ZNF10 could be involved in a potent intrinsic antiretroviral defense.