VAGINAL TRANSMISSION OF SIV RT VIRIONS

艾滋病毒主要是一种性传播疾病， 关于性传播过程中病毒变异的传播知之甚少， contact. 了解通过性传播的病毒类型 也许可以设计疫苗来预防 艾滋病。 长期以来，人们一直认为病毒体中的遗传物质 只是RNA，但最近的研究表明， SIV和HIV病毒体中RNA转化为DNA的过程都是正常的。 还被 已经证明，具有DNA转录本的病毒体比具有DNA转录本的病毒体更 比没有这些的病毒体更有效地感染静息淋巴细胞 成绩单 目的本研究利用恒河猴/SIV 模型来检验逆转录（RT）病毒是 更容易通过性接触传播 结果6只动物 阴道内接种低剂量的SIVmac 251 RT，而 用相同量的正常病毒体接种六只动物。 到目前为止，还没有动物感染这两种病毒 病毒库存。 因此，DNA转录本的存在似乎并不 对病毒传播的效率有显著影响 穿过阴道粘膜 未来方向研究仍在继续 为了确定是否存在对传输的微妙影响， 在这项研究中没有注意到。 关键词病毒变异，HIV粘膜 传输

Significance HIV is primarily a sexually transmitted disease but little is known about the transmission of viral variants during sexual contact. An understanding of the types of viruses transmitted by sex may make it possible to design vaccines to prevent the transmission of HIV. It has long been held that the genetic material in the virion was RNA only, but it has been shown recently that some transcription of RNA to DNA occurs normally in both SIV and HIV virions. Further is has been demonstrated that virions with DNA transcripts are more efficient at infecting resting lymphocytes than virions without these transcripts. Objectives In this study, we used the rhesus macaque/SIV model to test the hypothesis that reverse transcribed (RT) viruses are more efficiently transmitted by sexual contact. Results Six animals were inoculated intravaginally with a low dose of SIVmac251 RT, while six animals were inoculated with the same amount of normal virions. Thus far none of the animals have become infected with either of these virus stocks. Thus the presence of DNA transcripts does not seem to have a marked effect on the efficiency at which a virus is transmitted across the vaginal mucosa. Future Directions Studies are continuing in order to determine if there is a subtle effect on transmission that was not noted in this study. KEYWORDS viral variants, HIV mucosal transmission