Immunosuppression induced by HIV infection

Abstract

Immunosuppression due to HIV infection is a resultant of several factors including defective innate signaling pathways, increased viral replication and virus load, gradual loss of peripheral CD4+T cells and depletion of T lymphocytes at mucosal sites that collectively lead to progressive immune deficiency and AIDS development. T cells derived from HIV patients were anergic and failed to mount a robust adaptive immune response. The host, on the other hand, becomes vulnerable to opportunistic infections such as tuberculosis and AIDS-related cancer such as Kaposi sarcoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and cervical cancer with remarkable level of immunosuppression. Elucidation of the various mechanisms involved in these immunologic perturbations is necessary to understand HIV pathogenesis for an effective immunotherapy.