CRYOPRESERVATION OF IMMUNOCOMPETENT T-CELLS AS A STRATEGY AGAINST AIDS

It seems unlikely that viral eradication, or permanent containment of viral replication, would be associated with a spontaneous and full rec overy of immunocompetence in adults with severe immunodepression induc ed by HIV. Therefore, in an attempt to prevent infection with HIV resu lting in the development of AIDS, and to reconstitute the immune syste m of immunosuppressed patients with HIV, autologous lymphocytes are be ing harvested and cryopreserved for later return to their donors. The results to date suggest that the harvesting procedure does not alter t he natural history of the infection. However, many important questions relevant to the use of this approach remain unanswered: (a) will HIV antigenic determinants be recognised by stored cells years after the h arvesting; (b) should stored cells be expanded in vitro before being r eturned; (c) san lymph node studies provide the information needed to choose the optimal time for the return of cells. With 17 million peopl e infected with HIV, studies related to disease prevention and immunor econstitution are worthy of urgent attention.