A comparative analysis of alterations in protein expression after activation or human immunodeficiency virus, type 1 infection of human CD4+ T cells

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Abstract
We have previously described an in vitro model for studying human immunodeficiency virus, type 1 (HIV‐1) infection in CD4+ T cells [1]. This model employs the WE17/10 cell line, which loses expression of its T cell receptor/CD3 (TCR/CD3) after several months of productive infection. We have used this model to analyze the synthesis and posttranslational modification of viral and cellular proteins after HIV‐1 infection and to determine the relationship of these changes to TCR/CD3 expression. Mainly we observe positive changes in protein expression after infection. A phosphoprotein, referred to as WH:1, appears in infected cells that still express their TCR/CD3 complex, and its persistence is linked to the presence of the complex. We examined whether loss of the TCR/CD3 complex could be associated with alterations in the T cell activation pathway as a result of infection. We used T cell activators and inhibitors to determine whether there were common elements between the two events. Quantitative enhancement in one spot, Cs:1, occurred after both Cyclosporin A treatment of uninfected cells and HIV‐1 infection of untreated cells. Taken altogether, these data suggest that a correlation exists between negative regulation of late events in the T cell activation pathway and down regulation of the TCR/CD3 complex after HIV‐1 infection.