The Cultured T_CM Model of HIV Latency

Models to study HIV latency have improved our understanding of the mechanisms involved in this process and have helped in the discovery and development of therapeutic strategies to eradicate HIV. Primary cell models are based on the in vitro generation of latently infected cells using CD4T cells isolated from blood, lymph nodes or other lymphoid organs. In this chapter, we describe the generation of HIV latently infected memory CD4T cells using blood naïve CD4T cells from peripheral blood with a phenotype resembling that of central memory CD4T cells. This model can be used to investigate the mechanisms involved in latency as well to develop strategies to target it.