title: Virulence and pathogenesis of HIV-1 infection: an evolutionary perspective.
abstract: Why some individuals develop AIDS rapidly whereas others remain healthy without treatment for many years remains a central question of HIV research. An evolutionary perspective reveals an apparent conflict between two levels of selection on the virus. On the one hand, there is rapid evolution of the virus in the host, and on the other, new observations indicate the existence of virus factors that affect the virulence of infection whose influence persists over years in infected individuals and across transmission events. Here, we review recent evidence that shows that viral genetic factors play a larger role in modulating disease severity than anticipated. We propose conceptual models that reconcile adaptive evolution at both levels of selection. Evolutionary analysis provides new insight into HIV pathogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Medical Research Council Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Fraser
authors.affiliation: Medical Research Council Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Imperial College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Katrina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lythgoe
authors.affiliation: Institute for Integrative Biology, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Gabriel E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Leventhal
authors.affiliation: Institute for Integrative Biology, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Shirreff
authors.affiliation: Warwick Mathematics Institute, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.|School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.|Department of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK.
authors.forename: T Déirdre
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Hollingsworth
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire MIVEGEC (UMR CNRS 5290, IRD, UM1, UM2), Montpellier, France.
authors.forename: Samuel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Alizon
authors.affiliation: Institute for Integrative Biology, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Sebastian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bonhoeffer
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics* / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000502:physiology; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D012641:Selection, Genetic; D019562:Viral Load; D014774:Virulence / Q000235:genetics; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000502:physiology; D014779:Virus Replication
chemical_list: D037521:Virulence Factors