Publications by authors named "Clara Duran-Castells"
Article Synopsis
- Researchers are studying how to predict if people can control HIV-1, a virus that causes AIDS, using a trial called BCN02, which combines a vaccine and a cancer drug.
- They looked at blood samples from 11 participants to see how their bodies responded during treatment pauses, categorizing them into "controllers" (who managed to keep the virus low) and "non-controllers" (who didn't).
- They found that a specific marker called CD33 could help tell the difference between the two groups and could be important for developing better treatments in the future.
Article Synopsis
- Latency in HIV-1 infection poses a significant challenge for eliminating the virus, and the mechanisms behind it are not fully understood.
- The Schlafen 12 protein (SLFN12) acts as a restriction factor that hampers HIV-1 replication by blocking post-transcriptional processes in infected cells, relying on specific features of the virus's genetic code and its active sites.
- Higher SLFN12 levels in HIV-infected individuals correlate with lower viral loads and are found in cells that have HIV transcripts but not proteins, indicating its role in maintaining viral latency and limiting virus release after latency is broken.
The implementation and access to combined antiretroviral treatment (cART) have dramatically improved the quality of life of people living with HIV (PLWH). However, some comorbidities, such as neurological disorders associated with HIV infection still represent a serious clinical challenge. Soluble factors in plasma that are associated with control of HIV replication and neurological dysfunction could serve as early biomarkers and as new therapeutic targets for this comorbidity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe contribution of the HLA-E/NKG2X axis in NK-mediated control of HIV infection remains unclear. We have studied the relationship between HLA-E expression and phenotypical as well as functional characteristics of NK cells, in the context of chronic HIV infection and in an model of acute infection. High viremia in HIV+ individuals was related to increased HLA-E expression, and changes in NK subpopulations, especially a reduction of the CD56 as well as an increase in adaptive NK subpopulation.
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- - The BCN02 trial explored the combination of therapeutic vaccination and romidepsin (a viral latency-reversing agent) in HIV-1-infected individuals, assessing viral rebound during a monitored antiretroviral pause to evaluate treatment efficacy.
- - Researchers analyzed blood samples from 14 trial participants to determine differences between individuals who experienced early vs. late viral rebound, focusing on DNA methylation, chromatin states, and HIV-specific T-cell responses.
- - Findings revealed distinct DNA methylation patterns that can help predict virus control after treatment, highlighting the potential of these epigenetic markers in developing effective HIV cure strategies.
Relative control of HIV-1 infection has been linked to genetic and immune host factors. In this study, we analyzed 96 plasma proteome arrays from chronic untreated HIV-1-infected individuals using the classificatory random forest approach to discriminate between uncontrolled disease (plasma viral load [pVL] >50,000 RNA copies/ml; CD4 counts 283 cells/mm, = 47) and relatively controlled disease (pVL <10,000 RNA copies/ml; CD4 counts 657 cells/mm, = 49). Our analysis highlighted the TNF molecule's relevance, in particular, TL1A (TNFSF15) and its cognate DR3 (TNFSRF25), both of which increased in the relative virus control phenotype.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGWAS, immune analyses and biomarker screenings have identified host factors associated with in vivo HIV-1 control. However, there is a gap in the knowledge about the mechanisms that regulate the expression of such host factors. Here, we aimed to assess DNA methylation impact on host genome in natural HIV-1 control.
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