Quantitation of human immunodeficiency virus provirus and circulating virus: relationship with immunologic parameters.
Virologic and seroimmunologic parameters were determined in 56 persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The provirus level varied from 10 to 100,000/10(6) CD4+ lymphocytes, and genomic HIV RNA was detectable in 39 of 56 patients at a relative concentration varying from 10 to greater than 250 copies/mL of serum. Provirus expressed as copies per 10(6) CD4+ lymphocytes and as circulating virus per milliliter of serum increased with disease progression and decrease of CD4+ cell concentration. The mean provirus concentration expressed per milliliter of blood varied little among categories of patients with various levels of CD4+ cells, but there was a progressive increase of circulating HIV genomic RNA. These virologic data suggest that during the course of HIV infection, an increasing proportion of the remaining CD4+ lymphocytes harbor the HIV genome and produce infectious virus. Finally, there was a marked correlation between increased provirus and genomic RNA concentration and three seroimmunologic markers: decrease in CD4+ cell count, p24 antigenemia, and disappearance of antibodies to HIV core antigen.
Central Laboratory of Virology, Geneva University Hospital, Switzerland.
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D001483:Base Sequence; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000382:microbiology; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24 / Q000097:blood; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D015341:Nucleic Acid Probes / Q000737:chemistry; D011533:Proviruses / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000276:immunology; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood
D004279:DNA, Viral; D015483:HIV Antibodies; D016655:HIV Core Protein p24; D015341:Nucleic Acid Probes; D012367:RNA, Viral