Biomarkers for Targeting the HIV-1 Reservoirs

Human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) is a causative agent of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Although highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) efficiently suppresses viral replication and increases the lifespan of patients, it does not completely eliminate the latently HIV-1 infected cells from a patient’s body. The greatest obstacle to finding an HIV-1 cure is posed by latently infected cells, otherwise referred to as “latent viral reservoirs”. Therefore, understanding the characteristics of HIV-1 reservoirs has become a top priority in the field of HIV-1 cure research, but defining the HIV-1 reservoirs is currently limited due to a lack of definite markers for probing the latent reservoir cells in which HIV-1 hides. If an assured marker for the latent reservoir cells is discovered, it will mark considerable progress in the process of understanding the characteristics and functions of HIV-1 reservoirs, and will make possible a sterilization cure by eliminating the reservoirs. In this paper, we review several cell surface molecules, including immune checkpoint molecules (PD1, TIGIT and LAG-3), CD30, CD2, CD20, CD32a, and CD127 suggested which have been as possible markers for probing HIV-1 reservoirs.