POSITIVE EFFECTS OF COMBINED ANTIRETROVIRAL THERAPY ON CD4(-CELL HOMEOSTASIS AND FUNCTION IN ADVANCED HIV DISEASE() T)

Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) increases CD4(+) cell num bers, but its ability to correct the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV )-induced immune deficiency remains unknown. A three-phase T cell reco nstitution was demonstrated after HAART, with: (i) an early rise of me mory CD4(+) cells, (ii) a reduction in T cell activation correlated to the decreasing retroviral activity together with an improved CD4(+) T cell reactivity to recall antigens, and (iii) a late rise of ''naive' ' CD4(+) lymphocytes while CD8(+) T cells declined, however, without c omplete normalization of these parameters. Thus, decreasing the HIV lo ad can reverse HIV-driven activation and CD4(+) T cell defects in adva nced HIV-infected patients.