Scientists have recorded how HIV infects healthy cells

– So far, we have ogolne idea of how HIV infects tissue, but to follow something like this live is something else entirely – said a molecular biologist from the Cochin Institute at the Sorbonne in Paris and cooroposed in „Cell Reports” – Morgane Bomsel. – Now we can define the exact sequence of events – she added.

In what wayob HIV virus penetrates the mucous membranes of the organoin the genital tract to reach its targets in the immune system, it was not entirely clear. Previous studies have looked at measuring theoIn biochemical or morphology in roThe researchers were able to use different points during HIV transmission to study this process.

To see the infection process from start to finish, the French researchers created a tissue model of the organoin the genitalia in a laboratory dish, ktoThe virus is then transmitted to the cellsorki lining the mucous membranes of organsoIn the genitalia, known as comoepithelial cells

The video shows the infected celloT lymphocyte cell labeled with a fluorescent protein in green, whichora encounters the comorks of epithelial mucosal tissue. When contact is made between them, a so-called “magnetic field” is formed. viral synapse – something like a pocket. This reorganization of the membrane of the infected comorki stimulates the production of the infectious HIV virus, whichory appears in the video as green dots.

The virus then penetrates through the synapse into the comorks of the mucosal epithelium. Importantly, the cellsorka that is not infected. The virus simply moves through the comor to the next layer, where it is captured by the comoimmune cells called macrophages, whichore are counted as comorec of feeding connective tissue. After an hour or twooch, when the virus is transmitted, contact with epithelial cellsorka ends and the infected comorka T moves on.

Infected T lymphocytes are present in all organ fluidsoin the genital. While viruses free of comorek can penetrate the mucous membrane, they are much less efficient at penetration than viruses associated with the comorkami, whichore can exploit the aforementioned pocket.

The surprising finding from this imaging was that the infected comoT cells seemed to target the comorks of epithelial tissue directly above the macrophageow. – Macrophages remain motionless, ready to catch the virus as it escapes from the celloepithelial rec. However, our observations led us to understand that the viral synapse is always formed on the comoepithelial cells, whichore located just above the macrophages, suggesting that we have an interaction between macrophages and epithelial – explained Bomsel.

Macrophages spread the virus for 20 consecutive days, then go dormant. However, the virus still remains in them. This poses the greatest challenge for the scientistoin the prodeveloping effective treatments for HIV. Virus present in macrophages can regrow, nullifying all effects of therapy.

As Bomsel acknowledged, therapies can affect these reserves, but interrupting them will restart them. The researcher stressed that it takes a vaccine active in the mucosa to prevent such virus reserves from forming. And this is what the team will now focus onoł Bomsel.