Cerebrospinal fluid compartmentalization of HIV-1 and correlation with plasma viral load and blood–brain barrier damage

Purpose We aimed to evaluate HIV-1 compartmentalization between the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and plasma and investigate as to which extent HIV-1 strains in CSF differ from those in blood and whether a correlation with either plasma viral load (pVL) or an altered blood–brain barrier (BBB) does exist.