AN UPDATE ON THE ROLE OF CYTOKINES IN HIV INFECTION: IMMUNOMODULATION PATHWAYS

HIV immune activation plays an important role in the immune pathogenesis of this disease. The mechanisms that drive this immune activation are partially defined and may be the result of multiple factors. Although the introduction of concomitant antiretroviral therapy (cART) has improved life expectancy in HIV-infected individuals, some sustained immune activation occurs in these patients when plasma HIV RNA levels are \\\'undetectable\\\'. There is evidence that A better understanding of immune activation pathways should be of value in developing complementary therapies to restore the immune system in HIV-infected patients. This paper describes cytokine-mediated pathways of immune activation of her CD4 and CD8 T-cell pools during HIV infection.