scholarly journals HIV-1 Epitope Variability Is Associated with T Cell Receptor Repertoire Instability and Breadth

2017 ◽  
Vol 91 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arumugam Balamurugan ◽  
Deon Claiborne ◽  
Hwee L. Ng ◽  
Otto O. Yang

ABSTRACT Mutational escape of HIV-1 from HIV-1-specific CD8+ T lymphocytes (CTLs) is a major barrier for effective immune control. Each epitope typically is targeted by multiple clones with distinct T cell receptors (TCRs). While the clonal repertoire may be important for containing epitope variation, determinants of its composition are poorly understood. We investigate the clonal repertoire of 29 CTL responses against 23 HIV-1 epitopes longitudinally in nine chronically infected untreated subjects with plasma viremia of <3,000 RNA copies/ml over 17 to 179 weeks. The composition of TCRs targeting each epitope varied considerably in stability over time, although clonal stability (Sorensen index) was not significantly time dependent within this interval. However, TCR stability inversely correlated with epitope variability in the Los Alamos HIV-1 Sequence Database, consistent with TCR evolution being driven by epitope variation. Finally, a robust inverse correlation of TCR breadth against each epitope versus epitope variability further suggested that this variability drives TCR repertoire diversification. In the context of studies demonstrating rapidly shifting HIV-1 sequences in vivo, our findings support a variably dynamic process of shifting CTL clonality lagging in tandem with viral evolution and suggest that preventing escape of HIV-1 may require coordinated direction of the CTL clonal repertoire to simultaneously block escape pathways. IMPORTANCE Mutational escape of HIV-1 from HIV-1-specific CD8+ T lymphocytes (CTLs) is a major barrier to effective immune control. The number of distinct CTL clones targeting each epitope is proposed to be an important factor, but the determinants are poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that the clonal stability and number of clones for the CTL response against an epitope are inversely associated with the general variability of the epitope. These results show that CTLs constantly lag epitope mutation, suggesting that preventing HIV-1 escape may require coordinated direction of the CTL clonal repertoire to simultaneously block escape pathways.

AIDS ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 19 (9) ◽  
pp. 887-896 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Scott Killian ◽  
Rachel Lubong Sabado ◽  
Stephanie Kilpatrick ◽  
Mary Ann Hausner ◽  
Beth D Jamieson ◽  
...  

1995 ◽  
Vol 182 (6) ◽  
pp. 1727-1737 ◽  
Author(s):  
S I Staprans ◽  
B L Hamilton ◽  
S E Follansbee ◽  
T Elbeik ◽  
P Barbosa ◽  
...  

Little is known about the factors that govern the level of HIV-1 replication in infected individuals. Recent studies (using potent antiviral drugs) of the kinetics of HIV-1 replication in vivo have demonstrated that steady-state levels of viremia are sustained by continuous rounds of de novo infection and the associated rapid turnover of CD4+ T lymphocytes. However, no information is available concerning the biologic variables that determine the size of the pool of T cells that are susceptible to virus infection or the amount of virus produced from infected cells. Furthermore, it is not known whether all CD4+ T lymphocytes are equally susceptible to HIV-1 infection at a given time or whether the infection is focused on cells of a particular state of activation or antigenic specificity. Although HIV-1 replication in culture is known to be greatly facilitated by T cell activation, the ability of specific antigenic stimulation to augment HIV-1 replication in vivo has not been studied. We sought to determine whether vaccination of HIV-1-infected adults leads to activation of virus replication and the targeting of vaccine antigen-responsive T cells for virus infection and destruction. Should T cell activation resulting from exposure to environmental antigens prove to be an important determinant of the steady-state levels of HIV-1 replication in vivo and lead to the preferential loss of specific populations of CD4+ T lymphocytes, it would have significant implications for our understanding of and therapeutic strategies for HIV-1 disease. To begin to address these issues, HIV-1-infected individuals and uninfected controls were studied by measurement of immune responses to influenza antigens and quantitation of virion-associated plasma HIV-1 RNA levels at baseline and at intervals after immunization with the trivalent influenza vaccine. Influenza vaccination resulted in readily demonstrable but transient increases in plasma HIV-1 RNA levels, indicative of activation of viral replication, in HIV-1-infected individuals with preserved ability to immunologically respond to vaccine antigens. Activation of HIV-1 replication by vaccination was more often seen and of greater magnitude in individuals who displayed a T cell proliferative response to vaccine antigens at baseline and in those who mounted a significant serologic response after vaccination. The fold increase in viremia, as well as the rates of increase of HIV-1 in plasma after vaccination and rates of viral decline after peak viremia, were higher in individuals with higher CD4+ T cell counts.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


1989 ◽  
Vol 169 (5) ◽  
pp. 1557-1564 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Wright ◽  
J E Lee ◽  
M P Link ◽  
S D Smith ◽  
W Carroll ◽  
...  

CTL are thought to play a role in the elimination of transformed cells in vivo. The effectiveness of such CTL is in part dependent on recognition of tumor specific antigens. Among the best characterized tumor-specific antigens are the unique or idiotypic determinants on the Ig of B cell lymphomas. Here we describe the generation and properties of human CTL specific for the idiotype on autologous B cell tumors. These cells are CD3+,CD4-,CD8- and express the delta chain of the TCR. Such cells may prove useful in tumor-specific adoptive therapy.


1999 ◽  
Vol 97 (6) ◽  
pp. 707-718 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. PRICE ◽  
Chris A. O'CALLAGHAN ◽  
Joseph A. WHELAN ◽  
Philippa J. EASTERBROOK ◽  
Rodney E. PHILLIPS

Efforts to develop immune-based therapies for HIV infection have been impeded by incomplete definition of the immunological correlates of protection. Despite many precedents demonstrating that CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes are key mediators of protective anti-viral immunity in non-human animal models, direct evidence that these effector cells control viral replication in HIV-1 infection has remained elusive. The first part of this paper describes a detailed immunological and genetic study founded on evolutionary considerations. Following infection with HIV-1, virus variants which escaped recognition by autologous cytotoxic T lymphocytes were shown to possess a selection advantage within the host environment. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes therefore exert anti-viral pressure in vivo. This observation provides compelling evidence that cytotoxic T lymphocytes comprise a significant element of anti-retroviral immunity. Subsequently, the quantification of peripheral cytotoxic T lymphocyte frequencies utilizing peptide–(human leucocyte antigen class I) tetrameric complexes is described. Five patients with qualitatively similar immunodominant cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses during symptomatic primary HIV-1 infection were studied longitudinally. Expansions of virus-specific CD8+ lymphocytes comprising up to 2% of the total CD8+ T cell population were observed in the acute phase of infection. Antigenic load was identified as an important determinant of circulating HIV-1-specific CD8+ lymphocyte levels; however, significant numbers of such cells were also found to persist following prolonged therapeutic suppression of plasma viraemia. In addition, an analysis of antigenic sequence variation with time in this case series suggests that the early administration of combination anti-retroviral therapy may limit HIV-1 mutational escape from host cytolytic specificities. The implications of these preliminary data are discussed. The data presented suggest that vaccination protocols should aim to elicit vigorous cytotoxic T lymphocyte responses to HIV-1. Attempts to stimulate polyvalent responses to mutationally intolerant epitopes are likely to be most effective. Optimal management of HIV-1 infection requires an understanding of dynamic host–virus interactions, and may involve strategies designed to enhance cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity following periods of anti-retroviral drug therapy.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrine Schou Sandgaard ◽  
Ben Margetts ◽  
Teresa Attenborough ◽  
Triantafylia Gkouleli ◽  
Stuart Adams ◽  
...  

It is intriguing that, unlike adults with HIV-1, children with HIV-1 reach a greater CD4+ T cell recovery following planned treatment cessation. The reasons for the better outcomes in children remain unknown but may be related to increased thymic output and diversity of T cell receptor repertoires. HIV-1 infected children from the PENTA 11 trial tolerated planned treatment interruption without adverse long-term clinical, virological, or immunological consequences, once antiretroviral therapy was re-introduced. This contrasts to treatment interruption trials of HIV-1 infected adults, who had rapid changes in T cells and slow recovery when antiretroviral therapy was restarted. How children can develop such effective immune responses to planned treatment interruption may be critical for future studies. PENTA 11 was a randomized, phase II trial of planned treatment interruptions in HIV-1-infected children (ISRCTN 36694210). In this sub-study, eight patients in long-term follow-up were chosen with CD4+ count&gt;500/ml, viral load &lt;50c/ml at baseline: four patients on treatment interruption and four on continuous treatment. Together with measurements of thymic output, we used high-throughput next generation sequencing and bioinformatics to systematically organize memory CD8+ and naïve CD4+ T cell receptors according to diversity, clonal expansions, sequence sharing, antigen specificity, and T cell receptor similarities following treatment interruption compared to continuous treatment. We observed an increase in thymic output following treatment interruption compared to continuous treatment. This was accompanied by an increase in T cell receptor clonal expansions, increased T cell receptor sharing, and higher sequence similarities between patients, suggesting a more focused T cell receptor repertoire. The low numbers of patients included is a limitation and the data should be interpreted with caution. Nonetheless, the high levels of thymic output and the high diversity of the T cell receptor repertoire in children may be sufficient to reconstitute the T cell immune repertoire and reverse the impact of interruption of antiretroviral therapy. Importantly, the effective T cell receptor repertoires following treatment interruption may inform novel therapeutic strategies in children infected with HIV-1.


2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (12) ◽  
pp. 5646-5655 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bijan Etemad-Moghadam ◽  
Daniela Rhone ◽  
Tavis Steenbeke ◽  
Ying Sun ◽  
Judith Manola ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The mechanism of the progressive loss of CD4+ T lymphocytes, which underlies the development of AIDS in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1)-infected individuals, is unknown. Animal models, such as the infection of Old World monkeys by simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV) chimerae, can assist studies of HIV-1 pathogenesis. Serial in vivo passage of the nonpathogenic SHIV-89.6 generated a virus, SHIV-89.6P, that causes rapid depletion of CD4+ T lymphocytes and AIDS-like illness in monkeys. SHIV-KB9, a molecularly cloned virus derived from SHIV-89.6P, also caused CD4+ T-cell decline and AIDS in inoculated monkeys. It has been demonstrated that changes in the envelope glycoproteins of SHIV-89.6 and SHIV-KB9 determine the degree of CD4+ T-cell loss that accompanies a given level of virus replication in the host animals (G. B. Karlsson et. al., J. Exp. Med. 188:1159–1171, 1998). The envelope glycoproteins of the pathogenic SHIV mediated membrane fusion more efficiently than those of the parental, nonpathogenic virus. Here we show that the minimal envelope glycoprotein region that specifies this increase in membrane-fusing capacity is sufficient to convert SHIV-89.6 into a virus that causes profound CD4+ T-lymphocyte depletion in monkeys. We also studied two single amino acid changes that decrease the membrane-fusing ability of the SHIV-KB9 envelope glycoproteins by different mechanisms. Each of these changes attenuated the CD4+ T-cell destruction that accompanied a given level of virus replication in SHIV-infected monkeys. Thus, the ability of the HIV-1 envelope glycoproteins to fuse membranes, which has been implicated in the induction of viral cytopathic effects in vitro, contributes to the capacity of the pathogenic SHIV to deplete CD4+ T lymphocytes in vivo.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document