Human immunodeficiency virus evolution towards reduced replicative fitness in vivo and the development of AIDS.

ABSTRACT: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection progresses to AIDS following an asymptomatic period during which the virus is thought to evolve towards increased fitness and pathogenicity. We show mathematically that progression to the strongest HIV-induced pathology requires evolution of the virus towards reduced replicative fitness in vivo. This counter-intuitive outcome can happen if multiple viruses co-infect the same cell frequently, which has been shown to occur in recent experiments. According to our model, in the absence of frequent co-infection, the less fit AIDS-inducing strains might never emerge. The frequency of co-infection can correlate with virus load, which in turn is determined by immune responses. Thus, at the beginning of infection when immunity is strong and virus load is

SUBMITTER: Wodarz D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2274968 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature