Disulfiram Reactivates Latent HIV-1 in a Bcl-2-Transduced Primary CD4+ T Cell Model without Inducing Global T Cell Activation

S Xing, CK Bullen, NS Shroff, L Shan, HC Yang… - Journal of …, 2011 - Am Soc Microbiol
S Xing, CK Bullen, NS Shroff, L Shan, HC Yang, JL Manucci, S Bhat, H Zhang, JB Margolick…
Journal of virology, 2011Am Soc Microbiol
Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) can reduce plasma HIV-1 levels to below the
detection limit. However, due to the latent reservoir in resting CD4+ cells, HAART is not
curative. Elimination of this reservoir is critical to curing HIV-1 infection. Agents that
reactivate latent HIV-1 through nonspecific T cell activation are toxic. Here we demonstrate
in a primary CD4+ T cell model that the FDA-approved drug disulfiram reactivates latent HIV-
1 without global T cell activation. The extent to which disulfiram reactivates latent HIV-1 in …
Abstract
Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) can reduce plasma HIV-1 levels to below the detection limit. However, due to the latent reservoir in resting CD4+ cells, HAART is not curative. Elimination of this reservoir is critical to curing HIV-1 infection. Agents that reactivate latent HIV-1 through nonspecific T cell activation are toxic. Here we demonstrate in a primary CD4+ T cell model that the FDA-approved drug disulfiram reactivates latent HIV-1 without global T cell activation. The extent to which disulfiram reactivates latent HIV-1 in patient cells is unclear, but the drug alone or in combination may be useful in future eradication strategies.
American Society for Microbiology