HIV-1 and SIV predominantly use CCR5 expressed on a precursor population to establish infection in T follicular helper cells

Abstract

Background: T follicular helper (Tfh) cells are increasingly recognized as a major reservoir of HIV infection that will likely need to be addressed in approaches to curing HIV. However, Tfh express minimal CCR5, the major coreceptor for HIV-1, and the mechanism by which they are infected is unclear. We have previously shown that macaque Tfh lack CCR5, but are infected in vivo with CCR5-using SIV at levels comparable to other memory CD4+ T cells. Similarly, human splenic Tfh cells are highly infected with HIV-1 DNA. Therefore, we set out to examine the mechanism of infection of Tfh cells. Methodology: Tfh and other CD4+ T cell subsets from macaque lymph nodes and spleens, splenic Tfh from HIV..