HIV-1 X4/R5 co-receptor in viral reservoir during suppressive HAART

Abstract

As immune recovery during HAART is mainly caused by the expansion of X4-naive cells, we studied the evolution of HIV tropism in the reservoir of 34 patients receiving 48 weeks of HAART. No change in virus tropism was observed over time, but patients with X4 viruses had higher HIV-1 proviral DNA levels than patients with R5 viruses. This suggests that CCR5 antagonist activity should not be compromised in patients harbouring R5 viruses before starting HAART.