Dendritic cells (DCs) are potent antigen‐presenting cells that likely play multiple roles in human immunodeficiency virus‐1 (HIV‐1) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) pathogenesis. This paper describes the effects of pathogenic SIV infection on the networks of DCs in rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) intestinal tissues. Intestinal tissues were obtained from macaques at different stages of disease following infection with the pathogenic SIV/DeltaB670 isolate. The patterns and levels of expression of SIV and DC‐associated mRNAs were examined and quantitated directly in intestinal tissue sections. In situ hybridization was performed for SIV, DC‐specific ICAM3‐grabbing non‐integrin (DC‐SIGN), DC‐specific lysosome‐associated membrane glycoprotein (DC‐LAMP), DC‐specific C‐type lectin 1 (DECTIN‐1), CC chemokine receptor 6 (CCR6), CCR7, and macrophage inflammatory protein 3α (MIP‐3α/CCL20) mRNAs and quantitative image analysis was performed to measure mRNA expression levels. To identify the cell types productively infected by SIV, simultaneous in situ hybridization and immunohistochemical staining were performed. The DC networks in macaque intestinal tissues were found to be extensive and although they generally remained intact during the course of SIV infection, there were alterations in the expression of markers for immature DCs. One alteration was an increase in the expression in intestinal submucosa of DC‐SIGN, a molecule that binds to HIV‐1/SIV and increases its infectivity. Concomitant with this increase, it was found that during AIDS, the population of productively infected cells included DCs, based on co‐expression of DC‐SIGN and DECTIN‐1 mRNAs. These data indicate that SIV infection affects subpopulations of macaque intestinal DCs, including productive infection of DC‐SIGN⁺ DCs, the consequences of which are likely to be ongoing viral propagation and decreased immunostimulatory function. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.