Cellular Gene Expression Profiles in Rhesus Macaques Challenged Mucosally with a Pathogenic R5 Tropic Simian Human Immunodeficiency Virus Isolate

Abstract Insights into the host factors that contribute to an effective antiviral immune response may be obtained by examining global gene expression in simian human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV)-infected nonhuman primates that exhibit different virological outcomes. Immune responses and gene expression profiles in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were compared between animals that controlled or did not control viremia after infection. Rectal inoculation of eight rhesus macaques with R5-tropic SHIVSF162P3 resulted in a high level of plasma viremia during the acute phase of infection. The viremia was controlled to below levels of detection in six of these animals at the set point (controllers), whereas two animals had persistent viremia throughout the 140 wk that the animals were monitored (non-controllers). CD4+ T-cell counts declined slightly in both controllers and non-controllers in the acute phase of infection, but CD4+ T-cell counts continued to decline only in the non-controllers. Neutrali...