Virus and host immune system interaction during HIV-1 infection
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Temporal analysis of host immune responses and mechanisms impairing control of viral replication during the course of HIV-1 infection
IRAS ID
202844
Contact name
Dimitra Peppa
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University College London
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Z6364106/2016/02/76, UCL Data Protection Registration
Duration of Study in the UK
5 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection remains a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. There is an ongoing need to better characterise and harness the immune response in order to develop effective prophylactic strategies and supplement current therapeutic approaches for a ‘functional’ HIV cure.
Virus-host interactions during primary HIV-1 infection (PHI) are crucial determinants of the entire subsequent disease course. Primary infection thus presents an ideal opportunity to study the evolution of the immune response and understand why the immune system fails to contain early virus replication more competently. In chronic infection immune responses become progressively more dysregulated/’exhausted’ and less adaptable. The precise mechanisms of this immune dysfunction/disarray, affecting virtually every arm of the immune response, remain incompletely understood.
Accumulating evidence indicates that in addition to the pivotal role of adaptive immunity, in particular T cells, in the control of HIV, innate cells, such as Natural Killer (NK) cells, make a significant contribution to containment of viral replication and shaping of adaptive immunity (and may influence disease progression). A better understanding of the complex virus-host interactions will allow us to identify the ideal targets for immune-based therapies and generation of protective vaccine-induced immune responses.
We aim to further dissect the detailed molecular pathways underpinning the failure of antiviral immunity in HIV-1 infection and identify the immunological and genetic determinants that give rise to enhanced and sustained virological control. This work has important implications for our efforts/ultimate goal to induce immunity through the design of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines.REC name
South Central - Berkshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/SC/0265
Date of REC Opinion
25 May 2016
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion