scholarly journals The impact of antiretroviral therapy on population-level virulence evolution of HIV-1

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (113) ◽  
pp. 20150888 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannah E. Roberts ◽  
Philip J. R. Goulder ◽  
Angela R. McLean

In HIV-infected patients, an individual's set point viral load (SPVL) strongly predicts disease progression. Some think that SPVL is evolving, indicating that the virulence of the virus may be changing, but the data are not consistent. In addition, the widespread use of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has the potential to drive virulence evolution. We develop a simple deterministic model designed to answer the following questions: what are the expected patterns of virulence change in the initial decades of an epidemic? Could administration of ART drive changes in virulence evolution and, what is the potential size and direction of this effect? We find that even without ART we would not expect monotonic changes in average virulence. Transient decreases in virulence following the peak of an epidemic are not necessarily indicative of eventual evolution to avirulence. In the short term, we would expect widespread ART to cause limited downward pressure on virulence. In the long term, the direction of the effect is determined by a threshold condition, which we define. We conclude that, given the surpassing benefits of ART to the individual and in reducing onward transmission, virulence evolution considerations need have little bearing on how we treat.

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Summer Siddiqui ◽  
Duran Bao ◽  
Lara Doyle-Meyers ◽  
Jason Dufour ◽  
Yuntao Wu ◽  
...  

Abstract Gut dysbiosis and microbial translocation are associated with chronic systemic immune activation and inflammation in HIV-1 infection. However, the extent of restoration of gut microbiota in HIV-1 patients with short or long-term antiretroviral therapy (ART) is unclear. To understand the impact of ART on the gut microbiota, we used the rhesus macaque model of SIV infection to characterize and compare the gut microbial community upon SIV infection and during ART. We observed altered taxonomic compositions of gut microbiota communities upon SIV infection and at different time points of ART. SIV-infected animals showed decreased diversity of gut microbiome composition, while the ART group appeared to recover towards the diversity level of the healthy control. Animals undergoing ART for various lengths of time were observed to have differential gut bacterial abundance across different time points. In addition, increased blood lipopolysaccharide (LPS) levels during SIV infection were reduced to near normal upon ART, indicating that microbial translocation and immune activation can be improved during therapy. In conclusion, while short ART may be related to transient increase of certain pathogenic bacterial microbiome, ART may promote microbiome diversity compromised by SIV infection, improve the gut microbiota towards the healthy compositions and alleviate immune activation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorena Leticia Peixoto de Lima ◽  
Allysson Quintino Tenório de Oliveira ◽  
Tuane Carolina Ferreira Moura ◽  
Ednelza da Silva Graça Amoras ◽  
Sandra Souza Lima ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The HIV-1 epidemic is still considered a global public health problem, but great advances have been made in fighting it by antiretroviral therapy (ART). ART has a considerable impact on viral replication and host immunity. The production of type I interferon (IFN) is key to the innate immune response to viral infections. The STING and cGAS proteins have proven roles in the antiviral cascade. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of ART on innate immunity, which was represented by STING and cGAS gene expression and plasma IFN-α level. Methods This cohort study evaluated a group of 33 individuals who were initially naïve to therapy and who were treated at a reference center and reassessed 12 months after starting ART. Gene expression levels and viral load were evaluated by real-time PCR, CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocyte counts by flow cytometry, and IFN-α level by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results From before to after ART, the CD4+ T cell count and the CD4+/CD8+ ratio significantly increased (p < 0.0001), the CD8+ T cell count slightly decreased, and viral load decreased to undetectable levels in most of the group (84.85%). The expression of STING and cGAS significantly decreased (p = 0.0034 and p = 0.0001, respectively) after the use of ART, but IFN-α did not (p = 0.1558). Among the markers evaluated, the only markers that showed a correlation with each other were STING and CD4+ T at the time of the first collection. Conclusions ART provided immune recovery and viral suppression to the studied group and indirectly downregulated the STING and cGAS genes. In contrast, ART did not influence IFN-α. The expression of STING and cGAS was not correlated with the plasma level of IFN-α, which suggests that there is another pathway regulating this cytokine in addition to the STING–cGAS pathway.


Economies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 18 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Němec ◽  
Eva Kotlánová ◽  
Igor Kotlán ◽  
Zuzana Machová

While assessing the economic impacts of corruption, the corruption-related transmission channels which influence taxation as such have to be duly considered. Taking the example of the Czech Republic, this article aims to evaluate the impacts corruption has on the size of the shadow economy as well as on the individual sources of long-term economic growth, making use of a transmission channel through which corruption affects the tax burden components. Using the method of an extended DSGE model, it confirms the initial assumption that an increase in perceived corruption supports the shadow economy’s growth, but at the same time, it demonstrates that corruption and especially its perception has a significantly different effect on two key areas—the capital accumulation and the labour force size. It further identifies another sector of the economy representing taxes which are prone to tax evasion while asserting that corruption has a much more destructive effect on this sector of the economy, offering generalized implications for other post-communist EU member states in a similar situation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mayumi Imahashi ◽  
Hirotaka Ode ◽  
Ayumi Kobayashi ◽  
Michiko Nemoto ◽  
Masakazu Matsuda ◽  
...  

AbstractIn HIV-1-infected patients, antiretroviral therapy (ART) is a key factor that may impact commensal microbiota and cause the emergence of side effects. However, it is not fully understood how long-term ART regimens have diverse impacts on the microbial compositions over time. Here, we performed 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing of the fecal and salivary microbiomes in patients under different long-term ART. We found that ART, especially conventional nucleotide/nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI)-based ART, has remarkable impacts on fecal microbial diversity: decreased α-diversity and increased ß-diversity over time. In contrast, dynamic diversity changes in the salivary microbiome were not observed. Comparative analysis of bacterial genus compositions showed a propensity for Prevotella-enriched and Bacteroides-poor gut microbiotas in patients with ART over time. In addition, we observed a gradual reduction in Bacteroides but drastic increases in Succinivibrio and/or Megasphaera under conventional ART. These results suggest that ART, especially NRTI-based ART, has more suppressive impacts on microbiota composition and diversity in the gut than in the mouth, which potentially causes intestinal dysbiosis in patients. Therefore, NRTI-sparing ART, especially integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)- and/or non-nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-containing regimens, might alleviate the burden of intestinal dysbiosis in HIV-1-infected patients under long-term ART.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Prats ◽  
Ignacio Martínez-Zalacaín ◽  
Beatriz Mothe ◽  
Eugènia Negredo ◽  
Núria Pérez-Álvarez ◽  
...  

AbstractIntegrase strand transfer inhibitors (INSTI) are a main component of the current antiretroviral regimens recommended for treatment of HIV infection. However, little is known about the impact of INSTI on neurocognition and neuroimaging. We developed a prospective observational trial to evaluate the effects of INSTI-based antiretroviral therapy on comprehensive brain outcomes (cognitive, functional, and imaging) according to the time since HIV-1 acquisition. We recruited men living with HIV who initiated antiretroviral therapy with INSTI < 3 months since the estimated date of HIV-1 acquisition (n = 12) and > 6 months since estimated date of HIV-1 acquisition (n = 15). We also recruited a group of matched seronegative individuals (n = 15). Assessments were performed at baseline (before initiation of therapy in HIV arms) and at weeks 4 and 48. Baseline cognitive functioning was comparable between the arms. At week 48, we did not find cognitive differences between starting therapy with INSTI earlier than 3 months or later than 6 months after acquisition of HIV-1 infection. Functional status was poorer in individuals diagnosed earlier. This effect recovered 48 weeks after initiation of therapy. Regarding brain imaging, we found that men living with HIV initiating antiretroviral therapy later experienced a greater decrease in medial orbitofrontal cortex over time, with expected negative repercussions for decision-making tasks.


2014 ◽  
Vol 67 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Zheng ◽  
Babafemi Taiwo ◽  
Rajesh T. Gandhi ◽  
Peter W. Hunt ◽  
Ann C. Collier ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 381-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laila N. Abudulai ◽  
Sonia Fernandez ◽  
Karli Corscadden ◽  
Michael Hunter ◽  
Lea-Ann S. Kirkham ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. e1009686
Author(s):  
Taina T. Immonen ◽  
Christine M. Fennessey ◽  
Leslie Lipkey ◽  
Abigail Thorpe ◽  
Gregory Q. Del Prete ◽  
...  

Analytical treatment interruptions (ATIs) of antiretroviral therapy (ART) play a central role in evaluating the efficacy of HIV-1 treatment strategies targeting virus that persists despite ART. However, it remains unclear if ATIs alter the rebound-competent viral reservoir (RCVR), the virus population that persists during ART and from which viral recrudescence originates after ART discontinuation. To assess the impact of ATIs on the RCVR, we used a barcode sequence tagged SIV to track individual viral lineages through a series of ATIs in Rhesus macaques. We demonstrate that transient replication of individual rebounding lineages during an ATI can lead to their enrichment in the RCVR, increasing their probability of reactivating again after treatment discontinuation. These data establish that the RCVR can be altered by uncontrolled replication during ATI.


Author(s):  
Graham H R Smith ◽  
W Keith Henry ◽  
Daniel Podzamczer ◽  
Maria Del Mar Masiá ◽  
Christopher J Bettacchi ◽  
...  

Abstract Background In the LATTE-2 phase IIb study, long-acting (LA) injectable cabotegravir + rilpivirine dosed every 8 weeks (Q8W) or 4 weeks (Q4W) demonstrated comparable efficacy with daily oral antiretroviral therapy (ART) through 96 weeks in ART-naive adults with HIV-1. Here we report efficacy, tolerability, and safety of cabotegravir + rilpivirine LA over ~5 years. Methods After 20 weeks of oral cabotegravir + abacavir/lamivudine, participants were randomized to cabotegravir + rilpivirine LA Q8W or Q4W or continue oral ART through the 96-week maintenance period. In the extension period through Week 256, participants continued their current LA regimen (randomized Q8W/Q4W groups) or switched from oral ART to Q8W or Q4W LA therapy (extension-switch groups). Endpoints assessed included proportion of participants with HIV-1 RNA &lt;50 copies/mL (Snapshot algorithm) and adverse events (AEs). Results At Week 256, 186 (81%) of 230 participants in randomized Q8W/Q4W groups and 41 (93%) of 44 participants in extension-switch groups had HIV-1 RNA &lt;50 copies/mL. No protocol-defined virologic failures occurred after Week 48. Injection-site reactions infrequently resulted in discontinuation (4 [2%] and 1 [2%] participants in randomized Q8W/Q4W and extension-switch groups, respectively). Three participants in randomized Q8W/Q4W groups experienced drug-related serious AEs, including 1 fatal serious AE (Q4W group); none occurred in extension-switch groups. Of 25 participants with AEs leading to withdrawal, 20 were in the randomized Q4W group; no AE leading to withdrawal occurred in &gt;1 participant. Conclusions Cabotegravir + rilpivirine LA exhibited long-term efficacy and tolerability, demonstrating its durability as maintenance therapy for HIV-1 infection (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT02120352).


eLife ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eva Malatinkova ◽  
Ward De Spiegelaere ◽  
Pawel Bonczkowski ◽  
Maja Kiselinova ◽  
Karen Vervisch ◽  
...  

Persistent reservoirs remain the major obstacles to achieve an HIV-1 cure. Prolonged early antiretroviral therapy (ART) may reduce the extent of reservoirs and allow for virological control after ART discontinuation. We compared HIV-1 reservoirs in a cross-sectional study using polymerase chain reaction-based techniques in blood and tissue of early-treated seroconverters, late-treated patients, ART-naïve seroconverters, and long-term non-progressors (LTNPs) who have spontaneous virological control without treatment. A decade of early ART reduced the total and integrated HIV-1 DNA levels compared with later treatment initiation, but not reaching the low levels found in LTNPs. Total HIV-1 DNA in rectal biopsies did not differ between cohorts. Importantly, lower viral transcription (HIV-1 unspliced RNA) and enhanced immune preservation (CD4/CD8), reminiscent of LTNPs, were found in early compared to late-treated patients. This suggests that early treatment is associated with some immunovirological features of LTNPs that may improve the outcome of future interventions aimed at a functional cure.


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