Chinese HIV Controllers Exhibit Different Immunophenotypic Profiles and Viral Reservoir Dynamics Compared to Normal...

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Virology
• HIV/AIDS Research

Background:

• HIV controllers (HICs) spontaneously control viral load without antiretroviral therapy (ART).
• Understanding the immunological and reservoir characteristics of HICs is crucial for managing HIV infection.
• Chinese HICs represent a unique population for studying HIV control mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the immunophenotypic and reservoir dynamics in Chinese HICs.
• To compare these characteristics with normal progressors (NPs).
• To identify predictors of virologic control loss in HICs.

Main Methods:

• Prospective single-center study enrolling HICs and age/sex-matched NPs.
• Longitudinal immunophenotyping of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs).
• Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect total HIV-1 DNA.

Main Results:

• HICs exhibited higher NK and B-cell percentages, naive CD4+ T-cells, and CD4/CD8 ratio compared to NPs.
• HICs had lower activated CD8+ T-cells and total HIV-1 DNA at baseline.
• Loss of virologic control in HICs was associated with elevated baseline HIV-DNA, activated CD8+ T-cells, and lower CD4/CD8 ratio.

Conclusions:

• Chinese HICs display distinct immunophenotypes and lower HIV-1 DNA levels than NPs.
• Longitudinal monitoring of HIV-1 DNA, CD8+ T-cell activation, naive CD4+ T-cell dynamics, and CD4/CD8 ratio can predict virologic failure in HICs.