HIV–Host Cell Interaction

A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Immunology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 19148

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Institute of Microbiology, Lausanne University Hospital, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
Interests: HIV; latency; integration; epitranscriptomics; innate immunity; single-cell
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Despite collective efforts in understanding HIV infection and efficient antiviral therapies, we still do not have a sterilizing cure. Novel technological advancements, e.g., in microscopy imaging and in single-cell analyses, as well as recent studies continue to uncover novel mechanisms previously ignored or allow for the revisiting of old dogmas, opening additional perspectives for novel antiviral strategies and therapeutic interventions.

With this perspective in mind, the aim of this Special Issue is to provide an overview of the current knowledge on the HIV life cycle, its multiple interactions with cellular proteins that promote or inhibit viral progression, as well as novel targets and antiviral strategies for drug development and HIV cures.   

Prof. Dr. Angela Ciuffi
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • HIV replication
  • virus–host interactions
  • innate immunity
  • restriction factors
  • productive infection
  • latency
  • antivirals
  • HIV cures

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 4273 KiB  
Article
Sex and Age Impact CD4+ T Cell Susceptibility to HIV In Vitro through Cell Activation Dynamics
by Ludivine Brandt, Paolo Angelino, Raquel Martinez, Sara Cristinelli and Angela Ciuffi
Cells 2023, 12(23), 2689; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12232689 - 23 Nov 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1984
Abstract
Cellular composition and the responsiveness of the immune system evolve upon aging and are influenced by biological sex. CD4+ T cells from women living with HIV exhibit a decreased viral replication ex vivo compared to men’s. We, thus, hypothesized that these findings could [...] Read more.
Cellular composition and the responsiveness of the immune system evolve upon aging and are influenced by biological sex. CD4+ T cells from women living with HIV exhibit a decreased viral replication ex vivo compared to men’s. We, thus, hypothesized that these findings could be recapitulated in vitro and infected primary CD4+ T cells with HIV-based vectors pseudotyped with VSV-G or HIV envelopes. We used cells isolated from twenty donors to interrogate the effect of sex and age on permissiveness over a six-day activation kinetics. Our data identified an increased permissiveness to HIV between 24 and 72 h post-stimulation. Sex- and age-based analyses at these time points showed an increased susceptibility to HIV of the cells isolated from males and from donors over 50 years of age, respectively. A parallel assessment of surface markers’ expression revealed higher frequencies of activation marker CD69 and of immune checkpoint inhibitors (PD-1 and CTLA-4) in the cells from highly permissive donors. Furthermore, positive correlations were identified between the expression kinetics of CD69, PD-1 and CTLA-4 and HIV expression kinetics. The cell population heterogeneity was assessed using a single-cell RNA-Seq analysis and no cell subtype enrichment was identified according to sex. Finally, transcriptomic analyses further highlighted the role of activation in those differences with enriched activation and cell cycle gene sets in male and older female cells. Altogether, this study brought further evidence about the individual features affecting HIV replication at the cellular level and should be considered in latency reactivation studies for an HIV cure. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue HIV–Host Cell Interaction)
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Review

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25 pages, 1630 KiB  
Review
HIV–Host Cell Interactions
by Sepiso K. Masenga, Bislom C. Mweene, Emmanuel Luwaya, Lweendo Muchaili, Makondo Chona and Annet Kirabo
Cells 2023, 12(10), 1351; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12101351 - 9 May 2023
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 16672
Abstract
The development of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) was a great milestone in the management of HIV infection. ARVs suppress viral activity in the host cell, thus minimizing injury to the cells and prolonging life. However, an effective treatment has remained elusive for four decades [...] Read more.
The development of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) was a great milestone in the management of HIV infection. ARVs suppress viral activity in the host cell, thus minimizing injury to the cells and prolonging life. However, an effective treatment has remained elusive for four decades due to the successful immune evasion mechanisms of the virus. A thorough understanding of the molecular interaction of HIV with the host cell is essential in the development of both preventive and curative therapies for HIV infection. This review highlights several inherent mechanisms of HIV that promote its survival and propagation, such as the targeting of CD4+ lymphocytes, the downregulation of MHC class I and II, antigenic variation and an envelope complex that minimizes antibody access, and how they collaboratively render the immune system unable to mount an effective response. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue HIV–Host Cell Interaction)
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