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Updated: Jun 6, 2026
Chronic, Acute, and Reactivated HIV Infection in Humanized Immunodeficient Mouse Models
Published on: December 3, 2019
Biomarkers of neurological status in HIV infection: a 3-year study
Ann B Ragin1, Ying Wu, Renee Ochs
1Department of Radiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA. ann-ragin@northwestern.edu
Purpose:
To evaluate circulating cytokines and chemokines as correlates of the degree of brain injury in individuals with advanced human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.
Experimental Design:
Study participants included ten well-characterized subjects in advanced stage HIV infection. High-throughput multiplexed analysis was used to quantify markers of interest at baseline and 3 years later in the clinical course. Objective measurements of the brain were derived in vivo with quantitative magnetic resonance segmentation algorithms and with diffusion tensor imaging.
Results:
Of the markers examined, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1 or CCL-2) was the most prominent correlate of brain injury. Elevated MCP-1 levels correlated with brain white matter alterations at the initial assessment. The relationship to injury was more extensive 3 years later; elevated MCP-1 was significantly correlated with measures of brain microstructural alterations and of abject atrophy.
Conclusions And Clinical Relevance:
The findings build on our prior observations that elevated MCP-1 levels may be a useful predictive marker for HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder. As a potent chemoattractant, MCP-1 may mediate injury through participation in self-reinforcing cycles of chronic immune activation and cytokine/chemokine-mediated neurotoxicity.
