HIV-1 infection of dendritic cells.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1993. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

HIV-1 infection of dendritic cells.

Harvard AIDS Inst Ser; 1:511-25 1991. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE ICDB/93686282
Anonymous; No affiliation given

Abstract: The clinical characteristic of HIV-1 infection is the depletion of CD4+ T cells despite the relatively low frequency (10(-2) to 10(-4)) of infected CD4+ T cells early in the disease. One explanation for the T-cell loss is an early direct cell lysis of stimulated and infected T cells. Another mechanism proposed for the loss of CD4+ cells is that a small number of productively infected cells may kill normal T cells after syncytium formation. Dendritic cells are circulating-accessory and antigen-presenting cells, characterized by Steinman as potent accessory cells distinct from monocytes. HIV-1 infection of dendritic cells is described and its significance assessed, including phenotypic characteristics of dendritic cells and monocytes, functional characteristics of dendritic cells and monocytes, morphology of dendritic cells, immunologic characterization of leukocyte subsets, and viral p24 production in dendritic cells. Dendritic cells may play an important role in natural HIV-1 infection. In situ dendritic cells are located near the surface of the mucosa and may in this location be a site of primary infection. It is presumed that dendritic cells leave the mucosa and travel via the afferent lymphatics to the lymph nodes. Dendritic cells are 100-fold more potent than macrophages in supporting long-term growth of T cells and in presenting foreign antigens to T cells. These roles of dendritic cells raise the possibility that such cells are a plausible route of viral infection and viral spread. Chronic high-level virus production by the dendritic cells could not only sustain virus infection in vivo but could result in infection and progressive loss of the CD4+ T cells as well.

Keywords: Dendritic Cells/CYTOLOGY/METABOLISM/*MICROBIOLOGY/ULTRASTRUCTURE Human HIV Core Protein p24/BIOSYNTHESIS HIV-1/*ISOLATION & PURIF Microscopy, Electron MONOGRAPH
930228
M9320879

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