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Immune cells in HIV nonprogressors metabolize cholesterol more effectively

Issue: August 2015

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Some HIV patients who do not receive ART may not develop AIDS for several years due to the increased efficiency in which their immune cells metabolize cholesterol, according to study data presented at the International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention.

“We’ve known for 2 decades that some people don’t have the dramatic loss in their T cells and progression to AIDS that you’d expect to see without drug therapy,” Giovanna Rappocciolo, PhD, assistant professor of infectious diseases and microbiology the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, said in a press release. “Instead, the disease progresses more slowly, and we believe altered cholesterol metabolism in certain immune cells may be a reason.”

Rappocciolo and colleagues examined 30 years of data and samples from the NIH-funded Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study, identifying eight HIV progressors and eight nonprogressors. They conducted whole genome transcription analysis of antigen-producing cells (APCs) — including dendritic cells, B cells and CD4+ T cells — for patterns in gene expression that might help explain why the disease progressed more rapidly in some than others.

Giovanna Rappocciolo

“Compared to APCs from progressors, cells from nonprogressors expressed higher levels of several cholesterol-related genes associated with defective trans infection,” Rappocciolo said in the release. “These results improve understanding of how nonprogressors control HIV without drug therapy and potentially may contribute to new approaches to manage HIV infection.”

Figure 1. This poster depicts how cells spread HIV in the human body.

Source:2014 UPMC

According to the researchers, the ability to metabolize cholesterol more efficiently appears to be heritable. – by David Jwanier

Reference:

Rappocciolo G, et al. Abstract MOPEA013. Presented at: International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention; July 19-22, 2015; Vancouver, British Columbia.

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.