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Review
. 2021 Jan:51:101438.
doi: 10.1016/j.smim.2020.101438. Epub 2020 Nov 30.

HIV persistence in subsets of CD4+ T cells: 50 shades of reservoirs

Rémi Fromentin  1 , Nicolas Chomont  2
Affiliations
Review

HIV persistence in subsets of CD4+ T cells: 50 shades of reservoirs

Rémi Fromentin et al. Semin Immunol. 2021 Jan.

Abstract

Antiretroviral therapy controls HIV replication but does not eliminate the virus from the infected host. The persistence of a small pool of cells harboring integrated and replication-competent HIV genomes impedes viral eradication efforts. The HIV reservoir was originally described as a relatively homogeneous pool of resting memory CD4+ T cells. Over the past 20 years, the identification of multiple cellular subsets of CD4+ T cells endowed with distinct biological properties shed new lights on the heterogeneity of HIV reservoirs. It is now clear that HIV persists in a large variety of CD4+ T cells, which contribute to HIV persistence through different mechanisms. In this review, we summarize recent findings indicating that specific biological features of well-characterized subsets of CD4+ T cells individually contribute to the persistence of HIV. These include an increased sensitivity to HIV infection, specific tissue locations, enhanced survival and heightened capacity to proliferate. We also discuss the relative abilities of these cellular reservoirs to contribute to viral rebound upon ART interruption. Together, these findings reveal that the HIV reservoir is not homogeneous and should be viewed as a mosaic of multiple cell types that all contribute to HIV persistence through different mechanisms.

Keywords: CD4+ T cells; Central memory cells; HIV reservoir; Latency; Tfh; Tissues.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Contributions of CD4+ T cells subsets to HIV persistence.
CD4+ T cell subsets can be classified according to their functions (yellow), memory status (blue) and localization (green). Some of these classifications largely overlap. The relative contributions to viral persistence in depicted by their proximity to the red zone representing the HIV reservoir.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Cellular features involved in the establishment and maintenance of HIV reservoirs and in viral rebound.
Common features of HIV-infected cells (outer cyle) are required for the establishment, maintenance and rebound of the HIV reservoirs (inner cycle). Multiple CD4+ T cell subsets likely contribute to each phenomenon.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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