Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection of the brain.
Direct infection of the central nervous system by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1), the causative agent of AIDS, was not appreciated in the early years of the AIDS epidemic. Neurological complications associated with AIDS were largely attributed to opportunistic infections that arose as a result of the immunocompromised state of the patient and to depression. In 1985, several groups succeeded in isolating HIV-1 directly from brain tissue. Also that year, the viral genome was completely sequenced, and HIV-1 was found to belong to a neurotropic subfamily of retrovirus known as the Lentivirinae. These findings clearly indicated that direct HIV-1 infection of the central nervous system played a role in the development of AIDS-related neurological disease. This review summarizes the clinical manifestations of HIV-1 infection of the central nervous system and the related neuropathology, the tropism of HIV-1 for specific cell types both within and outside of the nervous system, the possible mechanisms by which HIV-1 damages the nervous system, and the current strategies for diagnosis and treatment of HIV-1-associated neuropathology.
Atwood
W J
WJ
Section on Molecular Virology and Genetics, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, Maryland 20892.
Berger
J R
JR
Kaderman
R
R
Tornatore
C S
CS
Major
E O
EO
D015526:AIDS Dementia Complex / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000473:pathology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000382:microbiology; D002648:Child; D016207:Cytokines / Q000276:immunology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008587:Meningitis, Viral / Q000473:pathology; D008590:Meningoencephalitis / Q000473:pathology; D011859:Radiography; D051381:Rats; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000627:therapeutic use
D016207:Cytokines; D015215:Zidovudine