Longitudinal Quantification of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 DNA and RNA in Long‐Term Nonprogressors
Open Access
- 1 June 1999
- journal article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in The Journal of Infectious Diseases
- Vol. 179 (6) , 1542-1548
- https://doi.org/10.1086/314757
Abstract
Twenty patients with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection for > 7 years, no HIV-1—related symptoms, no treatment, and CD4+ cell counts 1> 500/μL were included in a prospective study in 1993. Four years later, 12 patients had progressed (SPs), while 8 had not (long-term nonprogressors [LTNPs]). At inclusion, HIV-1 RNA, but not DNA, levels were higher in SPs. During follow-up, a consistent increase in HIV-1 RNA was seen in only 1 LTNP. In 2 LTNPs, plasma viremia was persistently undetectable or < 110 copies/mL. Infectious virus was isolated from only 1 LTNP and from 11 SPs. In 4 LTNPs, HIV-1 DNA levels decreased spontaneously with time. The restricted viral replication and the declining HIV-1 DNA levels suggest that the HIV-1 infection can be controlled efficiently in a few LTNPs, leading to a decrease in the total virus burden with time.Keywords
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