@article{mbs:/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-75-10-2789, author = "Ausiello, Clara M. and Sestili, Paola and Locardi, Chiara and Logozzi, Mariantonia and Rizza, Paola and Parlanti, Eleonora and Yang, Li-xia and Modica, Alessandro and Modesti, Andrea and Musiani, Piero and Kaido, Thomas J. and Rozera, Carmela and Buttò, Stefano and Belardelli, Filippo", title = "Defective response to T cell mitogens in mice injected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected U937 cells", journal= "Journal of General Virology", year = "1994", volume = "75", number = "10", pages = "2789-2794", doi = "https://doi.org/10.1099/0022-1317-75-10-2789", url = "https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-75-10-2789", publisher = "Microbiology Society", issn = "1465-2099", type = "Journal Article", abstract = "Swiss mice were injected intraperitoneally with uninfected or human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infected human U937 cells. At 6 days, no residual human cells were detected in mouse tissues as determined by PCR analysis of DNAs from injected mice using primers and probes for the human HLA-DQ alpha gene. At 6 to 12 months, approximately 60% of the HIV-1-injected mice had antibodies to HIV-1 gp 120 andgp41 proteins. Fifteen percent of the animals showed evidence of HIV-1 infection as determined by PCR analyses of DNA from peripheral blood leukocytes and by in situ hybridization for detection of HIV-1 mRNA in peritoneal cells. In this set of experiments, spleen cells from mice sacrificed at different times after injection were cultured for 48 h in the presence or absence of mitogens [i.e.: concanavalin (Con A) or anti-CD3 antibody] and then tested for lymphocyte proliferation. At 10 to 12 months, splenocytes from approximately 80 % of Swiss mice injected with HIV-1-infected U937 cells exhibited a marked defect in their proliferative response to Con A or anti-CD3 antibody as compared with spleen cells from both uninjected or U937 cell-injected mice. Similar results were obtained at 12 months in C3H/HeJ mice. Non-responding spleen cells from HIV-l-injected Swiss mice did not proliferate in response to anti-CD3 antibody even in the presence of co-stimulatory molecules such as phorbol myristate acetate or anti-CD28 antibody. Splenocytes from these mice also exhibited an impaired capacity to produce interferon-λ and interleukin-4 after mitogen stimulation. No T cell defects were observed in control-injected mice. Immunofluorescence analyses revealed a significant decrease in the percentage of both CD4+ and CD8+ spleen cells in HIV-l-injected mice. These data indicate that immunocompetent mice can be used to investigate some HIV-1- related immune dysfunctions in vivo. ", }