CD8⁺ T cell recall cytotoxicity during chronic treated HIV-1 infection is associated with limited reservoir size and activity.

ABSTRACT: The combination of replication-competent HIV-1 proviral persistence and virus-specific immune dysfunction prevents virus clearance during antiretroviral therapy (ART), resulting in rebound viremia after treatment interruption. Functional impairment of HIV-specific CD8⁺ T cells during chronic infection is typically not reversed by ART but has recently been shown to improve in some individuals after prolonged treatment. To evaluate the impact of cellular immune function on viral persistence, we mapped and functionally characterized HIV-1 epitope-specific CD8⁺ T cell responses and virus reservoirs in sixty people with HIV-1 (PWH) who initiated prolonged ART during chronic progressive infection. In 17% of participants, recall cytotoxicity of proliferative CD8⁺

SUBMITTER: Collins DR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12633139 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature