This site is intended for healthcare professionals

account_circleSign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

HIV infection of macrophages versus T-cells

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

Different isolates of HIV-1 have varying tropisms for CD4 positive cells:

  • during the early stages of infection HIV is predominatly macrophage-tropic (M-tropic)
  • during later stages of infection HIV isolates are T-cell tropic (T-tropic)

CD8 positive cells can inhibit the replication of HIV by two means:

  • cell-mediated cytolysis of infected cells
  • secretion of soluble factors

Three soluble factors have been found which specifically inhibit M-tropic HIV replication:

  • RANTES
  • MIP-1 alpha
  • MIP-1 beta

These three inhibitory factors bind to a chemokine receptor called CCR-5. Subsequent work has shown that CCR-5 on macrophages is the co-receptor, along with CD4, for M-tropic HIV infection.

One soluble factor has been found which specifically inhibits T-tropic HIV replication:

  • SDF-1

SDF-1 binds to a chemokine receptor called CXCR-4. CXCR-4 (also called fusin) on T-cells is the co-receptor, along with CD4, for T-tropic HIV infection.

Related pages

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation, such as a web address or phone number. This information will always be displayed when you visit this page