Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0235394 (wasting)
 8,040 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The human immunodeficiency virus is a member of the lentivirus subfamily of the retrovirus family. Retroviruses are RNA viruses which code for an RNA-dependent DNA polymerase (reverse transcriptase), which transcribes the RNA genome into a DNA provirus which, on integration with the host DNA, directs the synthesis of new virions. The RNA genome consists of a gag gene, which codes for the viral core proteins, a pol gene, which codes for the reverse transcriptase, an env gene, which codes for the glycoproteins of the viral envelope, and several genes (tat, rev, vif, vpr, and nef), that code for regulatory proteins. At each end of the genome are long terminal repeats, that contain regulatory elements for transcription. There are 3 subfamilies of Retroviridae (Oncovirinae, Spumavirinae, and Lentiverinae). The Lentiverinae ("slow viruses") include the bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV), the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), the human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV), and the simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIV). SIV has been isolated from macaques (mac), African green monkeys (agm), sooty mangabeys (sm), and mandrills (mnd). Only SIVmac causes an AIDS-like disease in its natural host, but it is genetically closer to HIV-2 than to HIV-1. SIVsm causes an AIDS-like disease in macaques, but not in the sooty mangabey. Monkeys infected with SIV develop diarrhea, wasting, decrease in T4 lymphocytes, lymphadenopathy, development of giant cells, and encephalitis, as well as opportunistic infections. Kaposi's sarcoma, however, has not been found in SIV-infected primates. Virus is recovered from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and the brain. SIV models are useful for understanding the natural history of primate lentiviruses, for defining the pathogenesis of AIDS, and for developing vaccines. The ideal model would be one in which HIV causes AIDS, but so far only chimpanzees and gibbons have successfully been infected with HIV-1, and although virus, is recovered from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of chimpanzees within 2 weeks of infection, and 2 animals have lost antibodies to the p24 protein, none has so far developed clinical AIDS. Attempts to develop vaccines to immunize chimpanzees are continuing. Nonprimate lentiviruses include the visna virus, the feline immunodeficiency virus, and the bovine immunodeficiency virus. The visna virus infects fibroblasts by fusion of the viral envelope with the plasma membrane of the fibroblast; it infects macrophages by endocytosis. Infected macrophages regulate the production and dissemination of viral particles. The feline immunodeficiency virus infects T-lymphocytes of cats and produces oral, gastrointestinal and respiratory pathology as well as lymphadenopathy and opportunistic infections. Bovine immunodeficiency-like virus causes a generalized lymphadenopathy similar to that seen in AIDS-related complex.
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PMID:Animal models for HIV infection and AIDS: memorandum from a WHO meeting. 285 Jan 18

Multicomponent DNA vaccines were used to elicit immune responses, which can impact viral challenge in three separate rhesus macaque models. Eight rhesus macaques were immunized with DNA vaccines for HIV env/rev and SIV gag/pol and were challenged intravenously with 10 animal infective doses (AID(50)) of cell-free SHIV IIIB. Three of eight immunized rhesus macaques were protected, exhibiting no detectable virus. Animals protected from nonpathogenic SHIVIIIB challenge were rested for extended periods of time and were rechallenged first with pathogenic SIV(mac239) and subsequently with pathogenic SHIV89.6P viruses. Following the pathogenic challenges, all three vaccinated animals were negative for viral coculture and antigenemia and were negative by PCR. In contrast, the control animals exhibited antigenemia by 2 weeks postchallenge and exhibited greater than 10 logs of virus/10(6) cells in limiting dilution coculture. The control animals exhibited CD4 cell loss and developed SIV-related wasting with high viral burden and subsequently failed to thrive. Vaccinated animals remained virus-negative and were protected from the viral load, CD4 loss, disease, and death. We observed strong Th1-type cellular immune responses in the protected macaques throughout the study, suggesting their important roles in protection. These studies support the finding that multicomponent DNA vaccines can directly impact viral replication and disease in a highly pathogenic challenge system, thus potentially broadening our strategies against HIV.
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PMID:Protection from immunodeficiency virus challenges in rhesus macaques by multicomponent DNA immunization. 1143 55

We report, to our knowledge, the first HIV type 1 (HIV-1) transgenic (Tg) rat. Expression of the transgene, consisting of an HIV-1 provirus with a functional deletion of gag and pol, is regulated by the viral long terminal repeat. Spliced and unspliced viral transcripts were expressed in lymph nodes, thymus, liver, kidney, and spleen, suggesting that Tat and Rev are functional. Viral proteins were identified in spleen tissue sections by immunohistochemistry and gp120 was present in splenic macrophages, T and B cells, and in serum. Clinical signs included wasting, mild to severe skin lesions, opaque cataracts, neurological signs, and respiratory difficulty. Histopathology included a selective loss of splenocytes within the periarterial lymphoid sheath, increased apoptosis of endothelial cells and splenocytes, follicular hyperplasia of the spleen, lymphocyte depletion of mesenteric lymph nodes, interstitial pneumonia, psoriatic skin lesions, and neurological, cardiac, and renal pathologies. Immunologically, delayed-type hypersensitivity response to keyhole limpet hemocyanin was diminished. By contrast, Ab titers and proliferative response to recall antigen (keyhole limpet hemocyanin) were normal. The HIV-1 Tg rat thus has many similarities to humans infected with HIV-1 in expression of viral genes, immune-response alterations, and pathologies resulting from infection. The HIV-1 Tg rat may provide a valuable model for some of the pathogenic manifestations of chronic HIV-1 diseases and could be useful in testing therapeutic regimens targeted to stages of viral replication subsequent to proviral integration.
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PMID:An HIV-1 transgenic rat that develops HIV-related pathology and immunologic dysfunction. 1148 87

HIV-1 viral replication is limited in patients given highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART); however, HIV-1 viral proteins are still present. We demonstrate that the developing HIV-1Tg rat, which expresses all of the HIV-1 viral genes except the gag-pol replication genes, maintains lower body weight compared with the F344 control rat. Although HIV-1Tg rats eat and drink less than the control animals, they are not anorexic and show no evidence of anhedonia. At 19 months (mo) of age, HIV-1Tg rats begin to show clinical signs of wasting that progress to death. Using real-time RT-PCR, we compared the expression of the HIV viral proteins Tat, gp120, nef, and vif, in the HIV-1Tg rats at 2-3 mo of age with those at 10-11 mo of age. RNA levels of viral protein in the spleens of younger rats were significantly greater than those in the older rats (P<0.01). Conversely, viral protein mRNA levels in the spinal cord, cerebellum, and striatum were significantly greater in the older rats than in the younger animals (P<0.01). In the prefrontal cortex, Tat and nef expression was significantly greater at 2-3 mo of age than at 10-11 mo of age (P<0.05). These findings indicate that there may be age-dependent differential expression of various HIV viral proteins, with a switch from peripheral immune organs to the CNS, even when the animals are still pre-symptomatic. Our study also demonstrates that this non-infectious rat can be a useful model simulating HIV-1 infected individuals that are on HAART.
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PMID:The HIV-1 transgenic rat as a model for HIV-1 infected individuals on HAART. 1991 21