Relational concurrency, stages of infection, and the evolution of HIV set point viral load.

ABSTRACT: HIV viral load (VL) predicts both transmission potential and rate of disease progression. For reasons that are still not fully understood, the set point viral load (SPVL) established after acute infection varies across individuals and populations. Previous studies have suggested that population mean SPVL (MSPVL) has evolved near an optimum that reflects a trade-off between transmissibility and host survival. Sexual network structures affect rates of potential exposure during different within-host phases of infection marked by different transmission probabilities, and thus affect the number and timing of transmission events. These structures include relational concurrency, which has been argued to explain key differences in HIV burden across populations. We hypothesize that concurren

SUBMITTER: Goodreau SM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6249390 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature