Longitudinal Analysis of Lymphocyte Ratios and HIV-1 Intracellular DNA Levels in Children

The associations between human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) intracellular DNA and immunological markers were analyzed longitudinally for children with sustained, undetectable RNA levels while receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for >2 years. When DNA levels reached a plateau at week 104 of therapy, in contrast to findings for adults, there was no correlation between the CD4 + :CD8 + ratio and DNA levels (r = -0.02; P =.95), and naive CD4 + CD45RA + lymphocytes predominated. These data suggest that the increased proportion of naive lymphocytes found in children are less susceptible to HIV-1 infection than are the memory lymphocytes that dominate immune reconstitution in adults.