Open AccessT cell apoptosis in human immunodeficiency virus type 2- and simian immunodeficiency virus-infected macaques
Author(s) -
Ulf Dittmer,
Harald Petry,
Christiane Stahl–Hennig∥,
Thomas Nißlein,
Michael B. Spring,
Wolfgang Lüke,
Walter Bodemer,
Kaup Fj,
Gerhard Hunsmann
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
journal of general virology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.55
H-Index - 167
eISSN - 1465-2099
pISSN - 0022-1317
DOI - 10.1099/0022-1317-77-10-2433
Subject(s) - simian immunodeficiency virus , biology , apoptosis , virology , pathogenesis , cd8 , peripheral blood mononuclear cell , virus , immunology , flow cytometry , macaque , immune system , in vitro , biochemistry , paleontology
Recent evidence suggests that T cell apoptosis could be involved in the pathogenesis of HIV infection. In addition, lymphocyte apoptosis has been described in SIV-infected macaques that developed simian AIDS. To investigate further the role of apoptosis in AIDS pathogenesis, we studied lymphocytes of HIV-2-infected cynomolgus macaques that did not develop simian AIDS. We compared apoptosis of lymphocytes from animals infected with non-pathogenic HIV-2 to that in macaques infected with pathogenic SIV. Unfractionated peripheral blood mononuclear cells of SIV- and HIV-2-infected macaques showed evidence of apoptosis by electron microscopy, flow cytometry (terminal dUTP nick end labelling) and visualization of DNA fragmentation. Between 30-50% apoptotic cells could be detected in SIV-infected animals, compared to approximately 30% in HIV-2-infected and 5-12% in uninfected monkeys. However, separation of PBMC into T cell subpopulations revealed striking differences in apoptosis between SIV- and HIV-2-infected macaques. In SIV-infected monkeys both CD4 and CD8 cells underwent apoptosis to a large extent. In contrast, in the HIV-2-infected macaques apoptosis was restricted to the CD8 cell compartment. The lack of apoptosis in CD4 cells of healthy HIV-2-infected macaques implies an important role for CD4 cell apoptosis in AIDS pathogenesis.