title: Uninfected haematopoietic progenitor (CD34+) cells purified from the bone marrow of AIDS patients are committed to apoptotic cell death in culture.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the mechanism underlying the poor growth in vitro of haematopoietic progenitor cells isolated from HIV-1-infected patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  Apoptotic death in liquid culture of bone-marrow CD34+ cells obtained from 11 HIV-1-seropositive patients and 18 HIV-1-seronegative donors was quantitatively monitored by a flow cytometry procedure.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No significant differences in the percentage of apoptotic cells were noted between the two groups immediately after purification. When CD34+ cells were placed in liquid cultures supplemented with 2 ng/ml interleukin-3, the number of apoptotic cells progressively and significantly (P < 0.05) increased in all HIV-1-seropositive patients, while it remained constant in HIV-1-seronegative individuals. Although all HIV-1-seropositive patients showed signs of active viral replication in the bone-marrow micro-environment, progenitor CD34+ cells did not show the presence of active and/or latent HIV-1 infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our data demonstrate that CD34+ cells isolated from AIDS patients with active HIV-1 replication in bone-marrow accessory cells are committed to apoptotic death without being directly affected by productive infection.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Microbiology, University of Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Re
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zauli
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gibellini
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Furlini
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ramazzotti
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Monari
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ranieri
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Capitani
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: La Placa
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000473:pathology*; D000328:Adult; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000378:metabolism*; D018952:Antigens, CD34; D017209:Apoptosis; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000502:physiology*; D006412:Hematopoietic Stem Cells / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D014779:Virus Replication
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D018952:Antigens, CD34