THE ETIOLOGY OF AIDS

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1986. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

THE ETIOLOGY OF AIDS

AIDS. Etiology, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention. DeVita VT, Hellman S, Rosenberg SA, eds. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Company, p. 31-54, 1985.. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE ICDB/86616573
Gallo RC; Shaw GM; Markham PD; Lab. of Tumor Cell Biology, NCI, NIH, Bethesda, MD

Abstract: The acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) was first recognized in 1981 as a unique clinical syndrome consisting of opportunistic infection and/or neoplasia, associated with unexplained immunodeficiency. Events leading to the discovery of human T-cell leukemic virus Type III (HTLV-III), the virus that causes AIDS, are reviewed under the following headings: isolation of HTLV-III, seroepidemiology of HTLV-III, biologic properties of HTLV-III, protein and antigenic properties of HTLV-III, and molecular biology of HLTV-III (molecular cloning of the HTLV-III genome; analysis of the HTLV-III genome; genomic diversity of HTLV-III; detection of HTLV-III DNA in fresh tissue). HTLV-III virus shares many of the biologic and physicochemical properties common to a family of retroviruses named human T-cell leukemia (lymphotropic) viruses, or HTLV. These common properties include the following: tropism for T-lymphocytes; induction of multinucleated giant cells; a high mol wt, Mg++-preferring reverse transcriptase; a relatively small major core protein (p24); distant antigenic and nucleic acid relatedness; and likely African origin. Although the basic characterization of HTLV-III as a new retrovirus is complete, many questions concerning its biologic and biochemical properties remain to be answered, as does the fundamental question of how the virus exerts its cytopathic effect and causes AIDS. The nucleotide sequence analysis of HTLV-III should provide crucial information concerning the structural-functional relationships of the viral genome. This information, along with expression studies and analyses of virus-specific proteins, will be important to ongoing efforts to develop a vaccine against the virus. (57 Refs)

Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/*ETIOLOGY/IMMUNOLOGY/ MICROBIOLOGY Antibodies, Viral/ANALYSIS/IMMUNOLOGY Antigen-Antibody Reactions DNA, Viral/ANALYSIS/GENETICS Female Human HTLV-BLV Viruses/GENETICS/IMMUNOLOGY/*ISOLATION & PURIF Male Nucleic Acid Hybridization *Retroviridae Infections T-Lymphocytes/ANALYSIS/IMMUNOLOGY Variation (Genetics) MONOGRAPH REVIEW

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