title: Enigma of HIV-1 latent infection in astrocytes: an in-vitro study using protein kinase C agonist as a latency reversing agent.
abstract: Purging HIV-1 to cure the infection in patients undergoing suppressive antiretroviral therapy requires targeting all possible viral reservoirs. Other than the memory CD4(+) T cells, several other HIV-1 reservoirs have been identified. HIV-1 infection in the brain as a reservoir is well documented, but not fully characterized. There, microglia, perivascular macrophages, and astrocytes can be infected by HIV-1. HIV-1 infection in astrocytes has been described as a nonproductive and primarily a latent infection. Using primary human astrocytes, we investigated latent HIV-1 infection and tested phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), a protein kinase C agonist, as an HIV-1-latency- reversing agent in infected astrocytes. Chloroquine (CQ) was used to facilitate initial HIV-1 escape from endosomes in astrocytes. CQ significantly increased HIV-1 infection. But treatment with PMA or viral Tat protein was similar to untreated HIV-1-infected astrocytes. Long-term follow-up of VSV-envelope-pseudotyped HIV-1 infected astrocytes showed persistent infection for 110 days, indicating the active state of the virus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC 29209, USA. Electronic address: acniwar@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ashok
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chauhan
mesh_terms: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology*; D001921:Brain / Q000166:cytology; D002460:Cell Line; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D057809:HEK293 Cells; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000821:virology*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D006801:Humans; D010703:Phorbol Esters; D011493:Protein Kinase C / Q000378:metabolism*; D017735:Virus Latency / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D010703:Phorbol Esters; C119222:phorbol-12-myristate; D011493:Protein Kinase C
keywords: Chloroquine; DDX3; HIV-1 brain; HIV-1 latency; Phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate; TRBP