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Updated: Aug 8, 2026
In Vitro Assay to Evaluate the Impact of Immunoregulatory Pathways on HIV-specific CD4 T Cell Effector Function
Published on: October 16, 2013
CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cell death during human immunodeficiency virus infection in vitro
J Blanco1, J Barretina, C Cabrera
1Fundació irsiCaixa, Laboratori de Retrovirologia, Hospital Universitari Germans Trias i Pujol, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Ctra. Canyet s/n, Badalona, Catalonia, 08916, Spain. jbalanco@ns.hugtip.scs.es
Abstract:
We have evaluated the death of CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells during in vitro human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and tonsilar tissue. Acute infections with several X4 and R5 HIV isolates induced a decrease in cell viability that was higher in infections with X4 viruses and correlated with an increased rate of CD4(+) T-cell death. In CD4(+) T cells, the primary X4 isolate AOM induced higher levels of death than the laboratory X4 isolates IIIB and NL4-3 or the R5 isolates BaL and MDM. An effect on CD8(+) T-cell viability was exclusively observed in infections by X4 viruses, including the NL4-3 strain, in both PBMC and tonsilar tissue. This effect was dependent on the env gene of the infecting isolate and required productive HIV replication in CD4(+) but not in CD8(+) T cells. Our results suggest that X4 and R5 HIV isolates depleted CD4(+) T cells to a different extent and that CD8(+) T-cell viability may also be affected by mechanisms other than those acting in CD4(+) T cells.
