Plastic restriction of HIV-1 replication in human macrophages derived from M1/M2 polarized monocytes

M1/M2 cytokine-dependent polarization of primary human MDMs has been shown to contain CCR5-dependent (R5) HIV-1 replication. In this study, a similar effect was achieved when monocytes were first polarized toward M1 or M2 and were infected 7 d after their differentiation into MDMs, regardless of whether the cytokines were removed 18 h after cell stimulation or were left in culture. Unlike polarized MDMs, no significant down-regulation of CD4 from the cell surface was observed in MDMs derived from M1/M2-polarized monocytes. A second stimulation of MDMs differentiated from M1/M2 monocytes with the opposite polarizing cytokines converted the virus replication profile according to the new stimuli. The expression of M1 and M2 markers (i.e., APOBEC3A and DC-SIGN, respectively) was induced by MDM stimulation with the opposite cytokines, although it also persisted in cells according to their first stimulatory condition. Thus, stimulation of monocytes with M1- and M2-inducing cytokines leads to a restriction of HIV-1 replication when these cells are infected several days later as differentiated MDMs. These observations imply that activation of circulating monocytes significantly influences their capacity to either support or restrict HIV-1 replication, once extravasated, and eventually to become infected as tissue macrophages.