Identifying novel compounds to eliminate latent HIV infection

Abstract

There are currently an estimated 36.9 million people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (PLWH) worldwide. In the past few decades, the advent of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has significantly reduced the number of deaths associated with this virus. However, ART is not curative. The persistence of HIV latently infected CD4+ T-cells presents the major barrier towards a cure for HIV. Latently infected T-cells are formed when the virus integrates into the host genome of infected cells without ensuing productive infection. Due to these latently infected cells, viral gene expression and production infection rebounds from the integrated viral DNA if ART is ceased. Thus, ART must current..