Determinants of HIV-1 reservoir size and long-term dynamics during suppressive ART.
Nadine TschumiChantal von SiebenthalValentina VongradTeja TurkKathrin NeumannNiko BeerenwinkelJasmina BogojeskaJacques FellayVolker RothYik Lim KokChristian W ThorballAlessandro BorghesiSonali ParbhooMario WieserKatharina KusejkoMatthieu PerreauThomas KlimkaitSabine YerlyManuel BattegayAndri RauchMatthias HoffmannEnos BernasconiMatthias CavassiniRoger D KouyosHuldrych F GunthardKarin J Metznernull nullPublished in: Nature communications (2019)
The HIV-1 reservoir is the major hurdle to a cure. We here evaluate viral and host characteristics associated with reservoir size and long-term dynamics in 1,057 individuals on suppressive antiretroviral therapy for a median of 5.4 years. At the population level, the reservoir decreases with diminishing differences over time, but increases in 26.6% of individuals. Viral blips and low-level viremia are significantly associated with slower reservoir decay. Initiation of ART within the first year of infection, pretreatment viral load, and ethnicity affect reservoir size, but less so long-term dynamics. Viral blips and low-level viremia are thus relevant for reservoir and cure studies.