Abstract
The binding of the HIV‐1 surface glycoprotein gp120 to several glycosphingolipids, reconstituted into planar lipid bilayers (see scheme; small circle= 2‐oleoyl‐1‐palmitoylphosphatidylcholine (POPC), arrow=glycosylceramide recognition element; left: low and right: high protein concentrations), has been quantitatively measured under equilibrium conditions. Complex binding behavior was observed, which suggests that the induced aggregation of gp120 molecules at a ligand‐bearing membrane surface may be an important step in the mechanism of HIV‐1 infection of a host cell.