Quantitation of reduced glutathione and cysteine in human immunodeficiency virus-infected patients.

Plasma viral load (VL) values and CD4(+) cell count are employed clinically for initiation of therapy in the treatment of patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), as previous clinical studies have shown a marked prevalence of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) development in seropositive individuals with VL values over 30 000 copies/mL. Many studies have shown that reduced glutathione (GSH) and cysteine (Cys) deficiency play an important role in the infection. We have developed capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE)-based assays and have used them to investigate the relationship between plasma and intracellular thiol levels and HIV-1 viremia in plasma.