Dendritic Cell Status Modulates the Outcome of HIV-Related B Cell Disease Progression

The overall outcome of HIV disease may depend on the host's capacity to maintain dendritic cell (DC) homeostasis at mucosal sites, where DC populations, one of the earliest cell types to be exposed to the virus, present an inherent capacity to modulate the balance between tolerance and protection. DCs may influence mucosal B cell responses against HIV through contact and/or production of B cell growth factors such as B lymphocyte stimulator (BLyS/BAFF), which in turn modulate the outcome of CD4[superscript]+[/superscript] T cell HIV effectors/targets. Recent observations of HIV/SIV infections in non-pathogenic animal models and from mucosal vaccination of nonhuman primates suggest that maintenance of systemic integrity may be achieved through constraining highly efficient immune responses to mucosal sites.