HIV Might be Dormant in Brain, New Study Suggests

A colorized electron microscope image shows a single humanimmunodeficiency virus (HIV) as it buds from a human immune cell,which the virus had infected. (NIAID via AP)
A colorized electron microscope image shows a single humanimmunodeficiency virus (HIV) as it buds from a human immune cell,which the virus had infected. (NIAID via AP)
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HIV Might be Dormant in Brain, New Study Suggests

A colorized electron microscope image shows a single humanimmunodeficiency virus (HIV) as it buds from a human immune cell,which the virus had infected. (NIAID via AP)
A colorized electron microscope image shows a single humanimmunodeficiency virus (HIV) as it buds from a human immune cell,which the virus had infected. (NIAID via AP)

A new study published June 16 in the Journal of Clinical Investigations, found that microglial cells, specialized immune cells with a long lifespan in the brain, can serve as a stable viral reservoir for latent HIV.

 

As a part of its life cycle, the human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV) inserts a copy of its DNA into human immune cells. Some of these newly infected immune cells can then transition into a dormant, latent state for a long period of time.

 

Although current therapies, such current antiretroviral therapy (ART), can successfully block the virus from replicating further, it cannot eradicate latent HIV. If treatment is ever discontinued, the virus can rebound from latency and reignite the progression of HIV infection to AIDS.

 

In the new study, led by scientists from the University of North Carolina’s School of Medicine, it has been confirmed that microglial cells can serve as a stable viral reservoir for latent HIV. The team studied the brains of macaques with the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), a virus that is closely related to HIV, to get a better understanding of how to extract and purify viable cells from primate brain tissue.

 

Researchers used physical separation techniques and antibodies to selectively remove microglial cells. Using these techniques, researchers then obtained samples that were donated by HIV+ people who were enrolled in “The Last Gift” Study at the University of California San Diego (UCSD).

 

The study involved altruistic HIV+ people, who are taking ART but suffering from other terminal illnesses, will their bodies to further the HIV research project. Now that the researchers know that latent HIV can take refuge in microglial cells in the brain, they are considering plans to target this type of reservoir.

 

“Since latent HIV in the brain is radically different from the virus in the periphery, researchers believe that it has adapted special characteristics to replicate in the brain,” explained first author Yuyang Tang, assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at UNC.



Crews Battle Wildfires in North, South Carolina amid Dry Conditions and Gusty Winds

MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA - MARCH 02: Firefighters attend to a flare-up in the Carolina Forest neighborhood on March 2, 2025 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. AFP
MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA - MARCH 02: Firefighters attend to a flare-up in the Carolina Forest neighborhood on March 2, 2025 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. AFP
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Crews Battle Wildfires in North, South Carolina amid Dry Conditions and Gusty Winds

MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA - MARCH 02: Firefighters attend to a flare-up in the Carolina Forest neighborhood on March 2, 2025 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. AFP
MYRTLE BEACH, SOUTH CAROLINA - MARCH 02: Firefighters attend to a flare-up in the Carolina Forest neighborhood on March 2, 2025 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. AFP

Crews battled wildfires in North and South Carolina on Sunday amid dry conditions and gusty winds as residents were forced to evacuate in some areas.
The National Weather Service warned of increased fire danger in the region due to a combination of critically dry fuels and very low relative humidity, The Associated Press reported.
In South Carolina, where more than 175 fires burned 6.6 square miles (17 square kilometers), Gov. Henry McMaster declared a state of emergency on Sunday to support the wildfire response effort, and a statewide burning ban remained in effect.
Crews made progress containing a fire in the Carolina Forest area west of the coastal resort city of Myrtle Beach, where residents had been ordered to evacuate several neighborhoods, according to Horry County Fire Rescue. Video showed some people running down the street as smoke filled the sky. But by late Sunday afternoon, the fire department announced that Carolina Forest evacuees could return home.
The South Carolina Forestry Commission estimated Sunday evening that the blaze had burned 2.5 square miles (6.5 square kilometers) with 30 percent of it contained. No structures had succumbed to the blaze and no injuries had been reported as of Sunday morning, officials said.
In North Carolina, the US Forest Service said fire crews were working to contain multiple wildfires burning in four forests across the state on Sunday. The largest, about 400 acres (162 hectares), was at Uwharrie National Forest, about 50 miles (80.47 kilometers) east of Charlotte. The Forest Service said Sunday afternoon that it had made progress on the fire, reaching about one-third containment.
The small southwestern town of Tryon in Polk County, North Carolina, urged some residents to evacuate Saturday as a fire spread rapidly there. The evacuations remained in effect Sunday. A decision on whether to lift them was expected to be made Monday after intentional burns are set to try to stop the fire from spreading.
That fire has burned about 500 acres (202 hectares) as of late Sunday, with zero percent containment, according to the Polk County Emergency Management/Fire Marshal's office. The North Carolina Forest Service was conducting water drops and back-burning operations on the ground, and area residents should expect a lot of smoke during those operations, officials said.
Officials have not said what caused any of the fires.