Alloantigen-Stimulated Anti-HIV Activity

Abstract

A number of studies have suggested that an immune response to human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alloantigens may contribute to protection against HIV infection. In the present study, we examined the effect of alloantigen-stimulated cell lines obtained from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of HIV-uninfected (HIV−) individuals and the soluble factors produced by these cell lines on HIV-1 replication. Multiple in vitro restimulation with irradiated allogeneic PBMC from HIV− donors resulted in the expansion of CD8+ T-cell lines that inhibited HIV-1 replication when cocultured with either autologous or heterologous in vitro–infected phytohemagglutinin (PHA) blasts. Supernatants from the alloantigen-stimulated cell lines also inhibited HIV replication in both PHA blasts and a chronically infected cell line. The alloantigen-stimulated cell lines and the factors they produced inhibited both T-cell–tropic (T) and macrophage-tropic (M) isolates of HIV-1. Blocking experiments using anti-chemokine antibodies suggested that this inhibition of HIV replication was not due to the β-chemokines present in cocultures of cell lines with HIV-infected blasts. These results indicate that alloantigen-stimulation of PBMC from HIV−individuals activates CD8+ T cells that produce soluble factor(s) that inhibit HIV replication of a wide spectrum of HIV-1 isolates through a chemokine-independent mechanism.This is a US government work. There are no restrictions on its use.