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Updated: May 17, 2026
13:50
Sequencing of Bacterial Microflora in Peripheral Blood: our Experience with HIV-infected Patients
Published on: June 11, 2011
Microbial translocation, immune activation, and HIV disease
Nichole R Klatt1, Nicholas T Funderburg, Jason M Brenchley
1Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology, Program in Barrier Immunity and Repair, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Trends in Microbiology
|October 16, 2012
Summary
Combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) improves human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prognosis but persistent inflammation and microbial translocation contribute to increased mortality in treated individuals.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Virology
- Gastroenterology
Background:
- Combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) has improved human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) outcomes.
- Long-term cART treatment is associated with increased mortality in HIV-infected individuals.
- Persistent inflammation despite undetectable viremia contributes to this increased mortality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the mechanisms of microbial translocation in HIV infection.
- To elucidate the role of microbial translocation in immune activation and disease progression.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of studies on microbial translocation and HIV.
- Analysis of mechanisms linking gut barrier dysfunction to immune activation.
Main Results:
- Microbial translocation, the passage of microbial products from the gut, contributes to persistent immune activation.
- This immune activation is linked to increased mortality in cART-treated HIV-infected individuals.
- Chronic inflammation is a key factor in disease progression.
Conclusions:
- Microbial translocation is a significant factor in persistent immune activation and increased mortality in HIV infection.
- Targeting microbial translocation may offer new therapeutic strategies for HIV management.
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