HIV-1 DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells is strongly associated with HIV-1 disease progression in recently infected West African adults.

Objective: To analyze the association between the HIV-1 DNA level in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and disease progression in recently infected West African adults.

Methods: HIV-1 DNA levels were measured in the PBMCs of 200 adults in the French National Agency for Research on AIDS and viral Hepatitis (ANRS) 1220 cohort who had recently been infected with HIV-1. The association between baseline HIV-1 DNA levels and disease progression was analyzed using multivariate Cox regression. Disease progression was defined as the occurrence of any of the following outcomes: death, first World Health Organization stage 3-4 event, or CD4 count<200/mm.

Results: About 200 participants were followed for a median of 30 months. At baseline, the median time from HIV-1 seroconversion was 9 months, median CD4 T-cell count was 471/mm, median HIV-1 DNA level was 3.0 log10 copies/10 PBMCs, and median plasma HIV-1 RNA level was 4.6 log10 copies/mL. The 5-year probability of remaining free of any outcome was 0.74 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.61 to 0.83] and 0.36 (95% CI: 0.23 to 0.49) in patients with baseline HIV-1 DNA3.0 log10 copies/10 PBMCs, respectively (P<0.001). The adjusted hazard ratio of disease progression was 2.17 in patients with HIV-1 DNA>3.0 log10 copies/10 PBMCs compared with other patients (95% CI: 1.24 to 3.80, P=0.007). The only other factor associated with progression was follow-up CD4 count (hazard ratio=1.23 per 100 cells/mm decrease; 95% CI: 1.07 to 1.41, P=0.003).

Discussion: PBMC HIV-1 DNA level was strongly associated with HIV-1 disease progression, even after adjusting for HIV-1 RNA and CD4 T-cell count. Further studies should assess whether patients with high HIV-1 DNA levels should start antiretroviral therapy earlier than other patients.