HIV-1 viremic controllers (VC) spontaneously control infection without antiretroviral treatment. Several studies indicate that IgG Abs from VCs induce enhanced responses from immune effector cells. Since signaling through Fc-γ receptors (FCGRs) modulate these Ab-driven responses, here we examine if enhanced FCGR activation is a common feature of IgG from VCs. Using an infected cell–based system, we observed that VC IgG stimulated greater FCGR2A and FCGR3A activation as compared with noncontrollers, independent of the magnitude of HIV-specific Ab binding or virus neutralization activities. Multivariate regression analysis showed that enhanced FCGR signaling was a significant predictor of VC status as compared with chronically infected patients (CIP) on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Unsupervised hierarchical clustering of patient IgG functions primarily grouped VC IgG profiles by enhanced FCGR2A, FCGR3A, or dual signaling activity. Our findings demonstrate that enhanced FCGR signaling is a common and significant predictive feature of VC IgG, with VCs displaying a distinct spectrum of FCGR activation profiles. Thus, profiling FCGR activation may provide a useful method for screening and distinguishing protective anti-HIV IgG responses in HIV-infected patients and in monitoring HIV vaccination regimens.
Raymond A. Alvarez, Ana M. Maestre, Kenneth Law, Natasha D. Durham, Maria Ines Barria, Akiko Ishii-Watabe, Minoru Tada, Manav Kapoor, Mathew T. Hotta, Gabriela Rodriguez-Caprio, Daniel S. Fierer, Ana Fernandez-Sesma, Viviana Simon, Benjamin K. Chen
Flow cytometry is utilized extensively for cellular analysis, but technical limitations have prevented its routine application for characterizing virus. The recent introduction of nanoscale fluorescence-activated cytometric cell sorting now allows analysis of individual virions. Here, we demonstrate staining and sorting of infectious HIV. Fluorescent antibodies specific for cellular molecules found on budding virions were used to label CCR5-tropic Bal HIV and CXCR4-tropic NL4.3 HIV Env-expressing pseudovirions made in THP-1 cells (monocyte/macrophage) and H9 cells (T cells), respectively. Using a flow cytometer, we resolved the stained virus beyond isotype staining and demonstrated purity and infectivity of sorted virus populations on cells with the appropriate coreceptors. We subsequently sorted infectious simian/human immunodeficiency virus from archived plasma. Recovery was approximately 0.5%, but virus present in plasma was already bound to viral-specific IgG generated in vivo, likely contributing to the low yield. Importantly, using two broadly neutralizing HIV antibodies, PG9 and VRC01, we also sorted virus from archived human plasma and analyzed the sorted populations genetically and by proteomics, identifying the quasispecies present. The ability to sort infectious HIV from clinically relevant samples provides material for detailed molecular, genetic, and proteomic analyses applicable to future design of vaccine antigens and potential development of personalized treatment regimens.
Thomas Musich, Jennifer C. Jones, Brandon F. Keele, Lisa M. Miller Jenkins, Thorsten Demberg, Thomas S. Uldrick, Robert Yarchoan, Marjorie Robert-Guroff
SIV DNA can be detected in lymphoid tissue–resident macrophages of chronically SIV-infected Asian macaques. These macrophages also contain evidence of recently phagocytosed SIV-infected CD4+ T cells. Here, we examine whether these macrophages contain replication-competent virus, whether viral DNA can be detected in tissue-resident macrophages from antiretroviral (ARV) therapy–treated animals and humans, and how the viral sequences amplified from macrophages and contemporaneous CD4+ T cells compare. In ARV-naive animals, we find that lymphoid tissue–resident macrophages contain replication-competent virus if they also contain viral DNA in ARV-naive Asian macaques. The genetic sequence of the virus within these macrophages is similar to those within CD4+ T cells from the same anatomic sites. In ARV-treated animals, we find that viral DNA can be amplified from lymphoid tissue–resident macrophages of SIV-infected Asian macaques that were treated with ARVs for at least 5 months, but we could not detect replication-competent virus from macrophages of animals treated with ARVs. Finally, we could not detect viral DNA in alveolar macrophages from HIV-infected individuals who received ARVs for 3 years and had undetectable viral loads. These data demonstrate that macrophages can contain replication-competent virus, but may not represent a significant reservoir for HIV in vivo.
Sarah R. DiNapoli, Alexandra M. Ortiz, Fan Wu, Kenta Matsuda, Homer L. Twigg III, Vanessa M. Hirsch, Kenneth Knox, Jason M. Brenchley
HIV-1–specific broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAbs) typically develop in individuals with continuous high-level viral replication and increased immune activation, conditions that cannot be reproduced during prophylactic immunization. Understanding mechanisms supporting bnAb development in the absence of high-level viremia may be important for designing bnAb-inducing immunogens. Here, we show that the breadth of neutralizing antibody responses in HIV-1 controllers was associated with a relative enrichment of circulating CXCR5+CXCR3+PD-1lo CD4+ T cells. These CXCR3+PD-1lo Tfh-like cells were preferentially induced in vitro by functionally superior dendritic cells from controller neutralizers, and able to secrete IL-21 and support B cells. In addition, these CXCR3+PD-1lo Tfh-like cells contained higher proportions of stem cell–like memory T cells, and upon antigenic stimulation differentiated into PD-1hi Tfh-like cells in a Notch-dependent manner. Together, these data suggest that CXCR5+CXCR3+PD-1lo cells represent a dendritic cell–primed precursor cell population for PD-1hi Tfh-like cells that may contribute to the generation of bnAbs in the absence of high-level viremia.
Enrique Martin-Gayo, Jacqueline Cronin, Taylor Hickman, Zhengyu Ouyang, Madelene Lindqvist, Kellie E. Kolb, Julian Schulze zur Wiesch, Rafael Cubas, Filippos Porichis, Alex K. Shalek, Jan van Lunzen, Elias K. Haddad, Bruce D. Walker, Daniel E. Kaufmann, Mathias Lichterfeld, Xu G. Yu
HIV-1 persistence in latent reservoirs during antiretroviral therapy (ART) is the main obstacle to virus eradication. To date, there is no marker that adequately identifies latently infected CD4+ T cells in vivo. Using a well-established ex vivo model, we generated latently infected CD4+ T cells and identified interferon-induced transmembrane protein 1 (IFITM1), a transmembrane antiviral factor, as being overexpressed in latently infected cells. By targeting IFITM1, we showed the efficient and specific killing of a latently infected cell line and CD4+ T cells from ART-suppressed patients through antibody-dependent cytolysis. We hypothesize that IFITM1 could mark natural reservoirs, identifying an immune target for killing of latently infected cells. These novel insights could be explored to develop clinical therapeutic approaches to effectively eradicate HIV-1.
Rui André Saraiva Raposo, Miguel de Mulder Rougvie, Dominic Paquin-Proulx, Phillip M. Brailey, Vinicius D. Cabido, Paul M. Zdinak, Allison S. Thomas, Szu-han Huang, Greta A. Beckerle, Richard B. Jones, Douglas F. Nixon
IFN-ε is a unique type I IFN that is not induced by pattern recognition response elements. IFN-ε is constitutively expressed in mucosal tissues, including the female genital mucosa. Although the direct antiviral activity of IFN-ε was thought to be weak compared with IFN-α, IFN-ε controls
Carley Tasker, Selvakumar Subbian, Pan Gao, Jennifer Couret, Carly Levine, Saleena Ghanny, Patricia Soteropoulos, Xilin Zhao, Nathaniel Landau, Wuyuan Lu, Theresa L. Chang
The ALVAC prime/ALVAC + AIDSVAX B/E boost RV144 vaccine trial induced an estimated 31% efficacy in a low-risk cohort where HIV‑1 exposures were likely at mucosal surfaces. An immune correlates study demonstrated that antibodies targeting the V2 region and in a secondary analysis antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), in the presence of low envelope-specific (Env-specific) IgA, correlated with decreased risk of infection. Thus, understanding the B cell repertoires induced by this vaccine in systemic and mucosal compartments are key to understanding the potential protective mechanisms of this vaccine regimen. We immunized rhesus macaques with the ALVAC/AIDSVAX B/E gp120 vaccine regimen given in RV144, and then gave a boost 6 months later, after which the animals were necropsied. We isolated systemic and intestinal vaccine Env-specific memory B cells. Whereas Env-specific B cell clonal lineages were shared between spleen, draining inguinal, anterior pelvic, posterior pelvic, and periaortic lymph nodes, members of Env‑specific B cell clonal lineages were absent in the terminal ileum. Env‑specific antibodies were detectable in rectal fluids, suggesting that IgG antibodies present at mucosal sites were likely systemically produced and transported to intestinal mucosal sites.
Kan Luo, Hua-Xin Liao, Ruijun Zhang, David Easterhoff, Kevin Wiehe, Thaddeus C. Gurley, Lawrence C. Armand, Ashley A. Allen, Tarra A. Von Holle, Dawn J. Marshall, John F. Whitesides, Jamie Pritchett, Andrew Foulger, Giovanna Hernandez, Robert Parks, Krissey E. Lloyd, Christina Stolarchuk, Sheetal Sawant, Jessica Peel, Nicole L. Yates, Erika Dunford, Sabrina Arora, Amy Wang, Cindy M. Bowman, Laura L. Sutherland, Richard M. Scearce, Shi-Mao Xia, Mattia Bonsignori, Justin Pollara, R. Whitney Edwards, Sampa Santra, Norman L. Letvin, James Tartaglia, Donald Francis, Faruk Sinangil, Carter Lee, Jaranit Kaewkungwal, Sorachai Nitayaphan, Punnee Pitisuttithum, Supachai Rerks-ngarm, Nelson L. Michael, Jerome H. Kim, S. Munir Alam, Nathan A. Vandergrift, Guido Ferrari, David C. Montefiori, Georgia D. Tomaras, Barton F. Haynes, M. Anthony Moody
The second-generation HIV-1 integrase strand transfer inhibitor (InSTI) dolutegravir (DTG) has had a major impact on the treatment of HIV-1 infection. Here we describe important but previously undetermined pharmacodynamic parameters for DTG. We show that the dose-response curve slope, which indicates cooperativity and is a major determinant of antiviral activity, is higher for DTG than for first-generation InSTIs. This steepness does not reflect inhibition of multiple steps in the HIV-1 life cycle, as is the case for allosteric integrase inhibitors and HIV-1 protease inhibitors. We also show that degree of independence, a metric of interaction favorability between antiretroviral drugs, is high for DTG and nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. Finally, we demonstrate poor selective advantage for HIV-1 bearing InSTI resistance mutations. Selective advantage, which incorporates both the magnitude of resistance conferred by a mutation and its fitness cost, explains the high genetic barrier to DTG resistance. Together, these parameters provide an explanation for the remarkable clinical success of DTG.
Sarah B. Laskey, Robert F. Siliciano
Early after HIV infection there is substantial depletion of CD4+ T cells in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract lamina propria (LP), with associated epithelial barrier damage, leading to microbial translocation and systemic inflammation and immune activation. In this study, we analyzed these early events in the GI tract in a cohort of Thai acute HIV-infected patients and determined the effect of early combination antiretroviral treatment (cART). HIV-uninfected and chronically and acutely HIV-infected patients at different Fiebig stages (I–V) underwent colonic biopsies and then received cART. Immunohistochemistry and quantitative image analysis were performed on cross-sectional and longitudinal colon biopsy specimens (day 0 to week 96) to measure GI tract damage (infiltration of polymorphonuclear cells), inflammation (Mx1, TNF-α), immune activation (Ki-67), and the CD4+ T cell population in the LP. The magnitude of GI tract damage, immune activation, and inflammation was significantly increased, with significantly depleted CD4+ T cells in the LP in all acutely infected groups prior to cART compared with HIV-uninfected control participants. While most patients treated during acute infection resolved GI tract inflammation and immune activation back to baseline levels after 24 weeks of cART, most acutely infected participants did not restore their CD4+ T cells after 96 weeks of cART.
Claire Deleage, Alexandra Schuetz, W. Gregory Alvord, Leslie Johnston, Xing-Pei Hao, David R. Morcock, Rungsun Rerknimitr, James L.K. Fletcher, Suwanna Puttamaswin, Nittaya Phanuphak, Robin Dewar, Joseph M. McCune, Irini Sereti, Merlin Robb, Jerome H. Kim, Timothy W. Schacker, Peter Hunt, Jeffrey D. Lifson, Jintanat Ananworanich, Jacob D. Estes, on behalf of the RV254/SEARCH 010 and RV304/SEARCH 013 Study Groups
Progressive HIV-1 infection leads to both profound immune suppression and pathologic inflammation in the majority of infected individuals. While adaptive immune dysfunction, as evidenced by CD4+ T cell depletion and exhaustion, has been extensively studied, less is known about the functional capacity of innate immune cell populations in the context of HIV-1 infection. Given the broad susceptibility to opportunistic infections and the dysregulated inflammation observed in progressive disease, we hypothesized that there would be significant changes in the innate cellular responses. Using a cohort of patients with multiple samplings before and after antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation, we demonstrated increased responses to innate immune stimuli following viral suppression, as measured by the production of inflammatory cytokines. Plasma viral load itself had the strongest association with this change in innate functional capacity. We further identified epigenetic modifications in the
Eileen P. Scully, Ainsley Lockhart, Wilfredo Garcia-Beltran, Christine D. Palmer, Chelsey Musante, Eric Rosenberg, Todd M. Allen, J. Judy Chang, Ronald J. Bosch, Marcus Altfeld
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