人类免疫缺陷病毒辅助受体的研究进展

人类免疫缺陷病毒（ＨＩＶ）进入靶细胞需要ＣＤ４受体及辅助受体的参与,不同的ＨＩＶ株进入靶细胞需不同的辅助受体,亲Ｔ细胞ＨＩＶ株进入靶细胞需融合因子辅助,而亲巨噬细胞ＨＩＶ株进入靶细胞则需另一种辅助受体ＣＣ－ＣＫＲ－５辅助受体的发现,为研究ＨＩＶ的致病机制及艾滋病的治疗提供新的方向。     

人类免疫缺陷病毒疫苗的研究进展

人类免疫缺陷病毒疫苗是控制艾滋病的最佳方法,动物模型证实该病毒疫苗是可行的。人类免疫缺陷病毒中和抗体可达到足够高的水平以预防该病毒感染,但有型特异性,人类免疫缺陷病毒特异性细胞毒T淋巴细胞不能单独预防该病毒感染,但能将病毒血病控制在低水平,目前,人们研究重点集中于病毒特异性抗性体和T细胞反应。现有疫苗尚不能诱导对原发性病毒株具有广泛中和能力的抗体。然而,重组痘病毒疫苗和DNA疫苗提示细胞毒T淋巴细胞反应对来自不同进化分支的原发病毒株有广泛的交叉反应力,人们需找到新的免疫原来诱导中和抗体,以取得最佳细胞毒T淋巴细胞反应。     

人类免疫缺陷病毒与疱疹病毒感染具有相关性

主要探讨人类免疫缺陷病毒 (HIV)与疱疹病毒感染相关性 ,介绍艾滋病合并疱疹病毒感染防治方法。HIV感染导致的机体免疫功能低下是疱疹病毒感染和复发的主要原因 ,而疱疹病毒 (除HHV 7外 )又作为辅助因子增加HIV传播的可能性 ,促进艾滋病发病并影响预后。经典抗疱疹病毒药物对艾滋病合并疱疹病毒感染有效 ,天然抗病毒药物将成为研究热点     

人类免疫缺陷病毒黏膜疫苗

在以往的20年间,有关发展艾滋病疫苗的研究曾经进行了大量的工作,但进展不大,通常诱生基于抗包膜抗体的疫苗效果并不理想。目前一般认为,细胞免疫应答,特别是CD8细胞毒性T淋巴细胞(CTL)／抑制细胞和CD4辅助性T淋巴细胞在人类免疫缺陷病毒的控制上是必需的。因此能诱生细胞免疫应答的疫苗在控制人类免疫缺陷病毒的播散上至关重要。本文阐述了有关黏膜疫苗的理论、艾滋病黏膜疫苗的种类以及经口免疫耐受性问题,并提出艾滋病应当视为一种自身免疫病。故抗炎症或免疫抑制药物应用似有其可取之处。     

耐药相关性的人类免疫缺陷病毒基因变异

随着高效抗反转录病毒治疗的广泛应用,艾滋病的治疗已获得实质性的进展。现已有23种抗病毒药物,但耐药性的出现使治疗效果下降。回顾性研究显示药物耐药性可以先于新的药物治疗而存在。前瞻性研究显示若事先掌握病人的基因耐药资料,抗病毒治疗的效果将好于未掌握资料者。本文将详细综述人类免疫缺陷病毒耐药机制和临床意义以指导抗病毒治疗。     

人类免疫缺陷病毒重组载体疫苗的研究进展

重组载体疫苗是目前人类免疫缺陷病毒疫苗的研究热点,近几年来不仅在病毒载体和细菌载体选用的种类方面有了新的突破,而且对载体疫苗的组合免疫策略和最佳免疫的选用方面已有全新的认识。本文就用于该病毒重组疫苗的病毒载体(包括痘病毒、α病毒、仙台病毒、甲型流感病毒、腺病毒、狂犬病病毒、疱疹性口炎病毒和单纯疱疹病毒载体)以及细菌载体(包括卡介苗、李斯特单胞茵、沙门茵和布氏杆菌载体)等的研究进展进行综述。     

人类免疫缺陷病毒疫苗基础研究新进展

目前人类免疫缺陷病毒感染在全球呈迅速上升趋势,严重威胁着人类的健康和生命,研制安全、高效的疫苗是控制其蔓延的有效措施。本文就疫苗研制过程中存在于抗体免疫、T细胞免疫方面亟待解决的诸多问题以及相应的研究进展进行综述。     

Human immunodeficiency virus type-1 vulnerates nascent neuronal cells

Macrophages or microglial cells are the major target cells for HIV-1 infection in the brain. The infected cells release neurotoxic factors that may cause severe neuronal cell damage, especially in the basal ganglia and hippocampus. In this study, we used rat OHC to examine the region-specific neuronal cell damage caused by HIV-1-infected macrophages. When OHC was cocultured with HIV-1-infected MDM, we found that neuronal cells at the GCL of the DG were preferentially killed via apoptosis, and that projection of MF from GCL to PCL of the CA3 region was severely disturbed. We marked precursor cells around the DG region by using an EGFP-expressing retrovirus vector and found that these cells lost the ability to differentiate into neurons when exposed to HIV-1-infected MDM. In the DG, new neurons are normally incorporated into GCL or PCL, while in the presence of HIV-1-infected MDM, mature neurons failed to be incorporated into those layers. These data indicate that the neurotoxic factor(s) released from HIV-1-infected macrophages impede(s) neuronal cell repair in brain tissue. This suggests that DG is the region of the hippocampus most vulnerable to neuronal damage caused by HIV-1 infection, and that its selective vulnerability is most likely due to the highly active neurogenesis that takes place in this region.     

Interaction of human plasma fibronectin with viral proteins of human immunodeficiency virus

Abstract Fibronectin (FN) is present in soluble and matrix forms in various body fluids and tissues, and has been shown to bind to several pathogens, including viruses. The interaction of FN with viral proteins of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) was investigated by immunofluorescence technique using a cell line chronically infected with HIV-1 (H9-V). The results of this study showed that FN binds to HIV-1 infected cells. especially at FN concentration of 5 μg/ml. In addition, FN-pentapeptide has shown the ability to bind to HIV-1 infected cells. On the other hand, preincubation with antibodies against FN abolished the binding of FN to HIV-1 infected cells. Finally, FN has shown to bind to HIV-1 glycoproteins, including gp41 and pg120. In contrast, no binding to HIV-1 core proteins, including p15 and p24, was noted. We suggest that FN, in binding HIV-1 particles, may reduce viremia and thus may be involved in the clearance of viral proteins from the cells.     

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Vpr modifies cell proliferation via multiple pathways.

Vpr, one of the accessory molecules of HIV-1, has been demonstrated to arrest the cell cycle at the G2 phase. This Vpr-mediated cell cycle arrest is implicated to have an important role in the viral life cycle. In the present study, we quantitate the extent of Vpr-mediated cell cycle arrest with the use of a bicistronic vector consisting of a vpr gene and a green fluorescence protein sequence. Using this system, we examined the effect of several Vprs on cell cycle progression and growth of cells from different species quantitatively. We found that Vpr from the T-cell line-adapted HIV-1SF2 strain (Vpr2) could not significantly induce G2 arrest in HeLa cells but was able to induce it in 293T cells. However, strong inhibition of cell proliferation in HeLa cells as well as in 293T cells was observed by Vpr2. This ability of Vpr2 to inhibit cell proliferation without G2 arrest was also observed when expressed in monkey cell line. Analyses of chimeric Vprs revealed that this species-non-specific growth inhibitory activity of Vpr was not mediated solely by the C-terminal region of Vpr. These results indicated that the growth inhibitory activity of Vpr is independent of its G2 arresting activity. In addition, the species-non-specific nature of this activity suggests that Vpr has a novel mechanism to retard cell proliferation by influencing basic cellular functions.     

Maternal-fetal transmission of human immunodeficiency virus

The World Health Organization estimates that by year 2000, 10 million children will be infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) at birth and will subsequently develop AIDS. Perinatally acquired infections account for the majority of all HIV-1 cases in children, with an estimated mother-to-infant transmission rate of more than 30%. It is not clear why more than half of the children born to HIV-1-infected mothers are uninfected. Maternal transmission of HIV-1 occurs at three levels: prepartum, intrapartum, and postpartum. Several maternal parameters including advanced clinical stages of the mother, low CD4+ lymphocyte counts, maternal immune response to HIV-1, recent infection, high level of circulating HIV-1, and maternal disease progression have been implicated in an increased risk of mother-to-infant transmission of HIV-1. Viral factors influencing mother-to-infant transmission are not known. Furthermore, several other factors such as acute infection during pregnancy, presence of other sexually transmitted diseases (STD) or other chronic infections, vaginal bleeding, disruption of placental integrity, premature rupture of membrane (PROM), and preterm PROM have been associated with mother-to-infant transmission of HIV-1. In addition, tobacco and cigarette smoking during pregnancy have been shown to triple the rate of maternal transmission of HIV-1. The AIDS Clinical Trial Group (ACTG) suggested that zidovudine (ZDV) can reduce the rate of mother-to-infant transmission of HIV-1 if administered to HIV-1-infected pregnant women with CD4 counts greater than 200. Moreover, this study failed to take into consideration several factors that may influence maternal transmission of HIV-1. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in mother-to-infant transmission of HIV-1 are not understood, which makes it more difficult to define strategies for effective treatment and prevention of HIV-1 infection in children. Several groups are engaged in the understanding of the molecular and biological properties of HIV-1 influencing mother-to-infant transmission. Results from my and several other laboratories suggest that the minor genotypes, subtypes, or variants of HIV-1 found in a genetically heterogeneous virus population of infected mothers are transmitted to their infants. The minor HIV-1 genotype predominates initially as a homogeneous population in the infant and then becomes diverse as the infant matures. Furthermore, transmission of a major or multiple HIV-1 genotypes from mother to infant has been reported. Taken together, these results strongly suggest that there are differences among the molecular and biological properties of the maternal variants that are transmitted to the infants and the maternal variants that are not transmitted to the infants. The understanding of the molecular and biological properties of the transmitted viruses will enable researchers to target a particular subtype in the mothers that is transmitted to the infants.     

Closing the door to human immunodeficiency virus

The pandemic of human immunodeficiency virus type one (HIV-1), the major etiologic agent of acquired immunodeficiency disease (AIDS), has led to over 33 million people living with the virus, among which 18 million are women and children. Until now, there is neither an effective vaccine nor a therapeutic cure despite over 30 years of efforts. Although the Thai RV144 vaccine trial has demonstrated an efficacy of 31.2%, an effective vaccine will likely rely on a breakthrough discovery of immunogens to elicit broadly reactive neutralizing antibodies, which may take years to achieve. Therefore, there is an urgency of exploring other prophylactic strategies. Recently, antiretroviral treatment as prevention is an exciting area of progress in HIV-1 research. Although effective, the implementation of such strategy faces great financial, political and social challenges in heavily affected regions such as developing countries where drug resistant viruses have already been found with growing incidence. Activating latently infected cells for therapeutic cure is another area of challenge. Since it is greatly difficult to eradicate HIV-1 after the establishment of viral latency, it is necessary to investigate strategies that may close the door to HIV-1. Here, we review studies on non-vaccine strategies in targeting viral entry, which may have critical implications for HIV-1 prevention.     

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Tat induces B7-H1 expression via ERK/MAPK signaling pathway

In HIV-infected subjects, B7-H1 synthesis and expression are up-regulated, and the degree of dysregulation correlates with the severity of disease. HIV-1 Tat protein, the viral transactivating factor, represents a key target for the host immune response. However, the relationship between B7-H1 and Tat protein has not been addressed. Here, we chose human endothelial cells which provide costimulatory signals sufficiently to influence T cells. We used recombinant pcDNA3.1(+)–Tat plasmid to transfect human endothelial cells ECV304 to establish stable Tat-expressed cell strain, and found that HIV-1 Tat was able to induce B7-H1 expression in ECV304 cells by Real-time PCR and flow cytometry analysis, and inhibited lymphocyte proliferation in co-culture system. Moreover, by using pharmacological inhibitor of ERK pathway, HIV-1 Tat induces B7-H1 expression via ERK/MAPK signaling pathway was corroborated. In summary, our results indicate that HIV-1 Tat could induce B7-H1 synthesis in ECV304 cells through ERK/MAPK signaling pathway.     

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 Rev protein activates hepatitis C virus gene expression by directly targeting the HCV 5'-untranslated region

Coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) accelerates hepatitis C disease progression; however, the mechanism underlying this effect is unknown. Here, we investigated the role of HIV-1 in HCV gene expression and the mechanism involved in this regulation. We discovered that HIV-1 Rev protein activates HCV gene expression. We further revealed that Rev binds to the internal loop of the HCV 5′-untranslated region (5′-UTR) to stimulate HCV IRES-mediated translation.     

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 Tat protein modulates cell cycle and apoptosis in Epstein-Barr virus-immortalized B cells

Patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) develop a spectrum of B cell lymphoproliferative disorders ranging from polyclonal B cell activation to B cell lymphomas. While a direct role of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is well recognized for most of these lesions, recent findings have suggested that transactivator HIV-1 Tat protein might be involved in the pathogenesis of B cell lymphomas. Tat-expressing EBV-positive B cells were generated by transduction with a retroviral Tat-encoding vector. B(Tat+) cells expressed lower levels of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 than parental and control B(Tat-) cells, generated by transduction with an empty retroviral vector, and were more prone to apoptosis upon serum withdrawal, as assessed by analysis of annexin V-stained cells and cleavage of poly-ADP-ribose-polymerase by caspase 3. Nevertheless, in serum starvation, B(Tat-) cells mainly exhibited the Rb hypo-phosphorylated form, underwent cell cycle arrest, and grew in single cell suspension, while B(Tat+) cells displayed the Rb hyper-phoshorylated form, progressed throughout the cell cycle, and retained the ability to grow in small clumps. Finding that B(Tat+) cells maintained proliferative capacity upon serum withdrawal suggests that cells expressing Tat have growth advantages among the EBV-driven cell proliferations and may originate B cell clones with more oncogenic potential.