Abstract
The upper gastrointestinal tract is a principal route of HIV-1 entry in vertical transmission and after oral–genital contact. The phenotype of the newly acquired virus is predominantly R5 (CCR5-tropic) and not X4 (CXCR4-tropic), although both R5 and X4 viruses are frequently inoculated onto the mucosa. Here we show that primary intestinal (jejunal) epithelial cells express galactosylceramide, an alternative primary receptor for HIV-1, and CCR5 but not CXCR4. Moreover, we show that intestinal epithelial cells transfer R5, but not X4, viruses to CCR5+ indicator cells, which can efficiently replicate and amplify virus expression. Transfer was remarkably efficient and was not inhibited by the fusion blocker T-20, but was substantially reduced by colchicine and low (4 °C) temperature, suggesting endocytotic uptake and microtubule-dependent transcytosis of HIV-1. Our finding that CCR5+ intestinal epithelial cells select and transfer exclusively R5 viruses indicates a mechanism for the selective transmission of R5 HIV-1 in primary infection acquired through the upper gastrointestinal tract.
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Acknowledgements
This study was supported NIH grants and contracts DK-47322, DE-72621, AI-41530, HD-41361, AI-35467, CA-73470, AI-28147, DK34151; the Central AIDS Virus Core of the Birmingham Center for AIDS Research (P30-AI-27767); and the Research Service of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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Meng, G., Wei, X., Wu, X. et al. Primary intestinal epithelial cells selectively transfer R5 HIV-1 to CCR5+ cells. Nat Med 8, 150–156 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0202-150
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0202-150
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