Increased In Vitro Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein Expression, Telomerase Activity and Telomere Length after Productive HIV-1 Infection on Murine Astrocytes

OJEDA DIEGO; LOPEZ-COSTA JUAN JOSÉ; SEDE MARIANO; LOPEZ ESTER, BERRIA MARÍA ISABEL; QUARLERI JORGE

JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH

WILEY-LISS, DIV JOHN WILEY & SONS INC

Lugar: New York; Año: 2014

0360-4012

Although HAND (HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders) results from injury and loss of neurons, productive infection routinely takes place in cells of macrophage lineage. In such a complex context, astrocytosis induced by local chemokines/cytokines are one of the hallmarks of HIV neuropathology. Whether this sustained astrocyte activation is able to alter telomere-aging process is unknown. We hypothesized that interaction of HIV with astrocytes may impact on astrocyte telomerase activity (TA) and telomere length in a scenario of astrocytic activation measured by expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP). To test this hypothesis, cultured murine astrocytes were challenged with pseudotyped HIV/vesicular stomatitis virus (HIV/VSV) to circumvent the absence of viral receptors; and GFAP, telomerase activity and telomere length were quantified. As an early and transient event after HIV infection, both TA activity and telomere length were significantly augmented (p