title: AZT blocks down-regulation of IL-2 and IFN-gamma gene expression in HIV acutely infected cells.
abstract: HIV infection causes dysregulation of cytokine gene expression in CD4+ T cells of the infected host. Azidothymidine (AZT) inhibits HIV replication by blocking reverse transcription. Using a one-stop cell-to-cell HIV infection model, we have investigated the expression of several key cytokines in HIV infected T cells in the absence or presence of AZT treatment. Acute HIV infection of T cells resulted in dramatic down regulation of the expression of IL-2 and INF-gamma mRNA. While beta-actin mRNA levels remained constant in both AZT-free and AZT treated cultures after HIV infection, it was found that AZT blocked the down regulation of IL-2 mRNA and INF-gamma mRNA in CD4+ T cells acutely infected with HIV.
authors.affiliation: National Centre for HIV Virology Research, Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science, Adelaide, Australia.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: T W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Kok
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Burrell
mesh_terms: D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D015536:Down-Regulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000235:genetics*; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000235:genetics*; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D015215:Zidovudine / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D007376:Interleukin-2; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D015215:Zidovudine; D007371:Interferon-gamma