Study of the specific immune response and the identification of HIV-1 epitopes in slow progressor and elite controller individuals infected by the HIV-1

• Grant number: 13/06584-4
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: July 01, 2014
• End date: December 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Immunology - Cellular Immunology
• Principal Investigator: Alberto José da Silva Duarte
• Grantee: Alberto José da Silva Duarte
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FM). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Bosco Christiano Maciel da Silva ; Jorge Simao do Rosario Casseb
• Associated research grant(s): 15/08200-4 - Study of the specific immune response and the identification of HIV-1 epitopes in slow progressor and elite controller individuals infected by the HIV-1, AP.EMU

Abstract

The global HIV/aids is one of the biggest pandemic in the last decades, since its discovery aids affected more than 60 million people and killed over than 25 million mostly in underdeveloped and developing countries. It is a priority to obtain a HIV vaccine and or new forms of effective treatments in the World. Unfortunately, the enormous genetic variability of the virus is one the main obstacle encountered against it. Long term non progressors or slow progressor (SP) and elite controller (EC) individuals are between 1 to 5% from those infected, these subjects remain asymptomatic and without signs of aids progression for a period of time between 8 to 10 years, the numbers of CD4+ T cell remainstable and above 500 cells./mm3 without antiretroviral treatment. These individuals are considered "key individuals" in the study of correlates of protection from HIV/HIV vaccines development. The factors that determine a non-progression or slow progression of the virus and the role of regulatory T cells in these individuals are not fully understood and have been insufficiently studied in our country. The T cell responses against HIV have a role on the virus control and in the development of vaccines strategies, prophylactic or therapeutic. The marjority of vaccines studies are target to the induction of T cell responses against epitopes of HIV subtype B. It is important to define the epitopes recognized by T cells of the Brazilian individuals and study the cross-reactivity between different epitopes of HIV subtypes circulating in Brazil, evaluating the viral variability effect on the recognition of these HIV epitopes. Our main aims are: A) to characterize the epidemiological, clinical and laboratory profiles of the SP and EC subjects of the HIV-1+ cohort; B) to characterize the phenotype of Treg cells (CD4+CD25+FoxP3+) and their influences on T cells activation on SP and EC individuals; C) to identify the immunodominant HIV-1 epitopes recognized by T cells of SP/EC, and determinate the phenotype of T cell (CD4+ or CD8+) involved; D) to determine the T cell cross-reactivity between the B, BBr, C and F epitopes from HIV-1 Brazilian isolates. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MANTOVANI, NATHALIA; DEFELICIBUS, ALEXANDRE; DA SILVA, ISRAEL TOJAL; CICERO, MAIRA FERREIRA; SANTANA, LUIZ CLAUDIO; ARNOLD, RAFAEL; DE CASTRO, DANIELA FUNAYAMA; SANZ DURO, RODRIGO LOPES; NISHIYAMA-JR, MILTON YUTAKA; MEIRELLES JUNQUEIRA-DE-AZEVEDO, INACIO LOIOLA; et al. Latency-associated DNA methylation patterns among HIV-1 infected individuals with distinct disease progression courses or antiretroviral virologic response. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, v. 11, n. 1, NOV 26 2021. (13/06584-4, 20/10396-2, 13/02652-5, 14/09623-3)