AIDS: Furthering Knowledge of Natural HIV Infection Control Mechanisms

A further step has just been taken in understanding the mechanisms that allow some individuals to control HIV infection without treatment. A research team led by Dr. Asier Sáez-Cirión (Institut Pasteur) and Dr. Bruno Vaslin (IDMIT, CEA-Inserm-Université Paris Saclay) observed for the first time that the antiviral activity of CD8+ T cells of "controller" macaques infected with the simian immunodeficiency virus (equivalent to HIV for non-human primates) was initially limited in the first two weeks of infection, but increased thereafter. One explanation for this phenomenon would be the early development of highly effective CD8+ memory T cells.

HIV controllers are rare individuals identified as being able to control their infection without treatment. Previous studies have highlighted the central role played by CD8+ T cells in this phenomenon, in which they recognize and rapidly eliminate HIV-infected cells. During the chronic phase of the infection, it has been observed that controllers possess CD8+ T cells whose molecular program differs from that of non-controllers.

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