HIV Pathogenesis and Cure

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ABSTRACT Support is requested for a Keystone Symposia conference entitled HIV Pathogenesis and Cure, organized by Drs. Robert F. Siliciano, Carine M. Van Lint and Romas Geleziunas. The conference will be held in Keystone, Colorado from March 22-26, 2020. Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV) is the cause of a global pandemic that has a very high mortality rate, with an estimated 35 million deaths to date. In addition, another 37 million people are currently living with HIV infection and will likely succumb from acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) without lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART). Optimal ART can halt viral replication, thereby preventing disease progression and allowing immune reconstitution. However, ART is not curative due the persistence of a latent form of the virus. This latent form is the major barrier to cure and the subject of an intense international research effort. Along with efforts to develop an HIV vaccine, targeting the HIV latent reservoir is a major priority for AIDS research. Achieving a better understanding of the basic biology of HIV infection is likely to be essential to HIV cure efforts. This conference will bring together scientists studying basic aspects of HIV virology as well as investigators working directly on the cure problem. Immune-based strategies to eliminate infected cells are an important component of many cure strategies, providing a logical connection to hold the joint conference on HIV Vaccines. This pairing will provide a unique opportunity to bring together basic and translational immunologists and virologists to consider the challenging goal of curing HIV infection. In addition to joint sessions focusing on exciting new developments in the study of antibody and T cell responses to HIV and novel technologies that will aid future studies of HIV biology, sessions also include basic mechanisms of HIV integration and transcriptional control, strategies for reversing latency and eliminating infected cells, and trials of novel cure strategies in animal models and in patients on ART. The goal of this conference is to bring together an amalgamation of basic and applied scientists working on functional cures and eradication of HIV in an effort to not only better understand HIV treatment strategies but also the emerging technologies and approaches that will lead to the eventual eradication of HIV from infected individuals.