title: The α7-nicotinic receptor is upregulated in immune cells from HIV-seropositive women: consequences to the cholinergic anti-inflammatory response.
abstract: Antiretroviral therapy partially restores the immune system and markedly increases life expectancy of HIV-infected patients. However, antiretroviral therapy does not restore full health. These patients suffer from poorly understood chronic inflammation that causes a number of AIDS and non-AIDS complications. Here we show that chronic inflammation in HIV+ patients may be due to the disruption of the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway by HIV envelope protein gp120IIIB. Our results demonstrate that HIV gp120IIIB induces α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (α7) upregulation and a paradoxical proinflammatory phenotype in macrophages, as activation of the upregulated α7 is no longer capable of inhibiting the release of proinflammatory cytokines. Our results demonstrate that disruption of the cholinergic-mediated anti-inflammatory response can result from an HIV protein. Collectively, these findings suggest that HIV tampering with a natural strategy to control inflammation could contribute to a crucial, unresolved problem of HIV infection: chronic inflammation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Delgado-Vélez
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Carlos A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Báez-Pagán
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Department of Pharmacology, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Yamil
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Gerena
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Sciences, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Orestes
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Quesada
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Laura I
authors.initials: LI
authors.lastname: Santiago-Pérez
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Coral M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Capó-Vélez
authors.affiliation: Specialized Neuroscience Research Program in Neuro AIDS, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico ; Internal Medicine, Neurology Division, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Valerie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Wojna
authors.affiliation: Specialized Neuroscience Research Program in Neuro AIDS, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico ; Department of Microbiology and Medical Zoology, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Loyda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Meléndez
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Rosiris
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: León-Rivera
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus , San Juan, Puerto Rico ; Specialized Neuroscience Research Program in Neuro AIDS, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico ; Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico , San Juan, Puerto Rico.
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Lasalde-Dominicci