Decreased recovery of replication-competent HIV-1 from peripheral blood mononuclear cell-derived monocyte/macrophages of HIV-positive patients after 3 years on highly active antiretroviral therapy.

BELMONTE L; BARÉ P; PICCHIO G; PÉREZ BIANCO R; DE TEZANOS PINTO M; CORTI M; VILLAFAÑE MF; DE BRACCO MM; RUIBAL ARES BH

AIDS - AN INTERNATIONAL MONTHLY JOURNAL

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Año: 2002 p. 1289 - 1292

0269-9370

We studied the release of p24 antigen from peripheral blood mononuclear cell-derived monocyte/macrophages obtained from 13 HIV-positive patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Although HIV-infected monocyte/macrophages were detected in 80% of patients after 36 months of continuous treatment, additional exposure to HAART reduced the chance of detecting HIV-releasing monocyte/macrophages. Therefore, after more than 3 years of HAART, recently infected monocytes may play a less important role as a source of emerging HIV-1 upon HAART interruption.