Selected Grantee Publications

Prolonged Experimental CD4⁺ T-Cell Depletion Does Not Cause Disease Progression In SIV-Infected African Green Monkeys

Le Hingrat et al., Nature Communications. 2023.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36379-2

Chronically simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)–infected African green monkeys (AGMs) partially recover mucosal CD4⁺ T cells, maintain gut integrity, and do not progress to AIDS. Investigators assessed the impact of prolonged, antibody-mediated CD4⁺ T cell depletion on gut integrity and natural history of SIV infection in AGMs. All circulating CD4⁺ T cells and more than 90% of mucosal CD4⁺ T cells were depleted. Plasma viral loads and cell-associated viral RNA in tissues were lower in CD4⁺-cell-depleted animals. CD4⁺-cell-depleted AGMs maintained gut integrity, controlled immune activation, and did not progress to AIDS. Therefore, CD4⁺ T cell depletion is not a determinant of SIV-related gut dysfunction when gastrointestinal tract epithelial damage and inflammation are absent, suggesting that disease progression and resistance to AIDS are independent of CD4⁺ T cell restoration in SIV-infected AGMs. Supported by ORIP (P40OD028116), NIAID, NIDDK, and NHLBI.