L. Negruţiu 1, O. Roşca 1
1 I-st Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Timişoara, Romania
Abstract
The link between HLA types and HIV disease progression has been known for over a decade. Now from, among others, the researches have reanalyzed many data from the Multi-Center AIDS Cohort (MACS). McMichael and colleagues have also documented CTL escape through the mutation of viral peptides which are to be „presented” by HLA class I (A, B, C) to the immune system (CD8 cells). More recently it has been shown that HLA class I alleles B27 and B57 are associated with better disease prognosis, while others (such as B35) are associated with worse outcome. The mechanism by which HLA infl uences disease progression is not yet understood. Some researchers have suggested that particular HLA molecules may be directly involved in restricting HIV eplication, although more research is needed to understand this process.