Virus-specific CD8+ cytotoxic T-lymphocyte activity associated with control of viremia in primary human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection

J Virol. 1994 Sep;68(9):6103-10. doi: 10.1128/JVI.68.9.6103-6110.1994.

Abstract

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) Env-, Gag-, Pol-, Nef-, and Tat-specific cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) activities were quantitated temporally in five patients with symptomatic primary HIV-1 infection. A dominant CD8(+)-mediated, major histocompatibility complex class I-restricted CTL response to the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein, gp160, was noted in four of the five patients studied. The level of HIV-1-specific CTL activity in the five patients paralleled the efficiency of control of primary viremia. Patients who mounted strong gp160-specific CTL responses showed rapid reduction of acute plasma viremia and antigenemia, while in contrast, primary viremia and antigenemia were poorly controlled in patients in whom virus-specific CTL activity was low or undetectable. These results suggest that HIV-1-specific CTL activity is a major component of the host immune response associated with the control of virus replication following primary HIV-1 infection and have important implications for the design of antiviral vaccines.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Gene Products, env / immunology*
  • HIV Antigens / immunology
  • HIV Envelope Protein gp160
  • HIV Infections / immunology*
  • HIV-1 / immunology*
  • Humans
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Peptides / immunology
  • Protein Precursors / immunology*
  • T-Lymphocyte Subsets / immunology*
  • T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / immunology*
  • Viremia / microbiology

Substances

  • Gene Products, env
  • HIV Antigens
  • HIV Envelope Protein gp160
  • Peptides
  • Protein Precursors