The Role of Myeloid Cells in HIV Latency and Persistence in the Brain

潜伏感染的CD 4 + T细胞被认为是预防HIV感染的最重要的HIV储存库。 实施艾滋病毒治疗。然而，骨髓细胞已被证明被HIV/SIV感染， 在动物模型中建立潜伏期1 -4。因此，单独消除T细胞库不太可能导致 彻底根除病毒我们的长期目标之一是帮助开发有效的艾滋病毒治疗方法 通过更好地了解复制细胞的类型和位置， 抗逆转录病毒疗法抑制下的艾滋病毒感染能力。艾滋病毒相关的神经系统疾病或手影响高达50%的 HIV感染者（PLWH）5-7表明HIV感染细胞可能持续存在于ART抑制的大脑中。 个体HIV-DNA在抗逆转录病毒疗法抑制的艾滋病病毒血症患者的脑脊液中很容易检测到， 存在与较差的神经认知性能相关8。脑组织分析 PLWH的尸检表明，巨噬细胞和小胶质细胞是HIV感染的主要靶点， 脑9 -11，并证明在来自病毒血症个体的脑组织中存在HIV-DNA+细胞10 -12。 小胶质细胞是脑中髓样细胞的主要群体，与巨噬细胞相反， 存活并经历细胞分裂13，14.由于这些原因，小胶质细胞被认为是一个关键的细胞， 艾滋病毒在大脑中的储存库11.虽然关于艾滋病毒的机制有大量的知识， 潜伏期和持久性在休息的CD 4 + T细胞，有显着较少了解艾滋病毒的持久性， 骨髓细胞，因此需要确定它们作为ART后HIV再活化来源的可能作用 中止具体而言，在脑中，小胶质细胞的贡献相对未知，部分原因是由于 在PLWH中，对该隔室中的细胞进行采样存在困难。我们的假设是艾滋病病毒保持着一种持久的 我们的目标是利用一种创新的人源化小鼠， 用人脑小胶质细胞重建的模型，以增加对人类大脑中的小胶质细胞如何生长的知识和理解。 小胶质细胞有助于艾滋病毒的持久性和病毒反弹，通过分析1）人类中ART对艾滋病毒的抑制 脑中的小胶质细胞，2）感染的小胶质细胞中存在的病毒库，以及3）HIV潜伏期的发展 以及分析治疗中断后脑中人类小胶质细胞的反弹。获得的新知识 从拟议的实验将有助于更好地了解艾滋病毒在大脑中的持久性， 重新激活，并帮助开发针对CNS的新型HIV治愈方法。

Latently infected CD4+ T cells are considered to be the most important HIV reservoir preventing the implementation of an HIV cure. However, myeloid cells have been shown to be infected by HIV/SIV and to establish latency in animal models1-4. Therefore, elimination of the T cell reservoir alone is not likely to result in complete virus eradication. One of our long-term goals is to aid the development of effective HIV cure strategies by gaining a better understanding of the type and location of the cells that harbor replication competent HIV under ART suppression. HIV-associated neurological disorders or HAND affect up to 50% of people living with HIV (PLWH)5-7 suggesting that HIV-infected cells may persist in the brain of ART-suppressed individuals. HIV-DNA has been readily detected in the CSF of aviremic ART-suppressed PLWH and its presence is associated with poorer neurocognitive performance8. Analyses of brain tissue obtained postmortem from PLWH indicate that macrophages and microglia are major targets for HIV infection in the brain9-11 and demonstrate the presence of HIV-DNA+ cells in brain tissue from aviremic individuals10-12. Microglia are the predominant population of myeloid cells in the brain and in contrast to macrophages, are long lived and undergo cell division13,14. For these reasons, microglia are thought to represent a key cellular reservoir of HIV in the brain11. While there is a significant body of knowledge about the mechanisms of HIV latency and persistence in resting CD4+ T cells, there is significantly less known about HIV persistence in myeloid cells and therefore, a need to establish their possible role as a source of HIV reactivation after ART discontinuation. Specifically, in the brain the contribution of microglia is relatively unknown due in part to the difficulties in sampling cells in this compartment in PLWH. Our hypothesis is that HIV maintains a persistent reservoir in the brain under suppressive ART and our objective is to utilize an innovative humanized mouse model reconstituted with human brain microglia to increase the knowledge and understanding about how microglia contribute to HIV persistence and viral rebound by analyzing 1) HIV suppression by ART in human microglia in the brain, 2) the viral reservoir present in infected microglia, and 3) the development of HIV latency and rebound in human microglia in the brain after analytical therapy interruption. The new knowledge gained from the proposed experiments will contribute to a better understanding of HIV persistence in the brain, reactivation, and aid the development of novel HIV Cure approaches that target the CNS.