Monocyte/macrophage-derived CC chemokines and their modulation by HIV-1 and cytokines: a complex network of interactions influencing viral replication and AIDS pathogenesis

Monocytes/macrophages are cells of the innate arm of the immune system and exert important regulatory effects on adaptive immune response. These cells also represent major targets of HIV infection and one of the main reservoirs. Notably, macrophage-tropic viruses are responsible for the initial infection, predominate in the asymptomatic phase, and persist throughout infection, even after the emergence of dual-tropic and T-tropic variants. Functional impairment of HIV-infected macrophages plays an important role in the immune dysregulation typical of AIDS. Recent studies have underlined the pivotal role of chemokines, cytokines, and their receptors in HIV pathogenesis. It is becoming increasingly apparent that the expression level of chemokine receptors, serving as HIV coreceptors, influences the susceptibility of a CD4+ cell to viral infection and to certain HIV envelope-induced alterations in cellular functions. Numerous pathogens, including HIV, can stimulate the production of chemokines and cytokines, which in turn can modulate coreceptor availability, resulting in differential replication potential for R5 and X4 strains, depending on the microenvironment milieu. Thus, a complex network of interactions involving immune mediators produced by monocytes/macrophages and other cell types as a direct/indirect consequence of HIV infection is operative at all stages of the disease and may profoundly influence the extent of viral replication, dissemination, and pathogenesis.