Second International Congress Drug Therapy in HIV Infection 18-22 November 1994 Glasgow, UK

UNSOLVED PUZZLES OF HIV PATHOGENESIS

Robin A. Weiss
Chester Beatty Laboratories, Institute of Cancer Research, Fulham Road, London SW3 6JB.

Int Cong Drug Therapy HIV 1994 Nov 18-22;2:Abstract No. 1.2
AIDS 1994, Vol. 8 (Suppl. 4);S1

Although we now understand a great deal about the molecular virology of human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV), precisely how HIV causes AIDS remains a mystery. The puzzle can be posed as a series of questions: Is HIV both necessary and sufficient to cause AIDS? Is AIDS essentially an autoimmune disease, triggering apoptosis, or is virus infection the cause of T helper lymphocyte depletion? What is the significance of HIV tropism and the role of macrophages and a long period between infection and AIDS? Do long-term survivors represent a separate entity of HIV -infected individuals? Can some infected by persons clear their HIV and become immune? Is HIV variation a crucial aspect of its pathogenesis and, if so, do virulent strains emerge? Is the HIV variation clock reset each time transmission occurs between individuals? Are the syndromes of wasting and neurodegeneration in AIDS distinct from immune deficiency? Although this overview will provide few definitive answers, it aims to focus on the continuing puzzles of HIV pathogenesis as a stimulusto discussion.

Presenting author: Robin A. Weiss

1994-11-18
1.2

Originally published in AIDS Volume 8, Supplement 4 and hosted with permission of the publisher Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 250 Waterloo Road, London, SE1 8RD, UK. Tel: +44 (0)20 7981 0700 Fax: +44 (0) 7981 0701

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