HIV conquers immune system faster than previousl...(tter idea of when to do it. The c...),Health

The conclusion comes from the study of 30 people who were newly-infected with HIV-1. Plasma from these individuals was sampled every three days for several months before, during, and after the "ramp-up" phase of infection, when HIV-1 is multiplying rapidly and heading toward its peak viral load. In measuring the levels of four products of CD4 T cell death during this period in these samples, they were able to track and establish a timetable of the virus's destructive path.

The four byproducts of CD4 T cell death include TRAIL (tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand), Fas ligand, TNF receptor type 2 and plasma microparticles, tiny bits of cell membrane that are broken up and left floating around in the plasma when the cell dies and breaks apart.

The researchers found that TRAIL levels increased significantly a full week (7.2. days) before peak viral load, which is approximately 17 days after HIV-1 transmission, suggesting that during the earliest period of infection, called the eclipse phase, TRAIL may actually initiate or hasten HIV-1's destruction of CD4 T cells. In contrast, they found that the levels of the other three cell death products were most significantly elevated during peak viral load.

"What this demonstrates is that significant T cell death is occurring much earlier during this period than we previously believed, and that TRAIL itself may be a co-conspirator in enhancing cell death," Haynes said. "This leads us to believe that the time frame for successful intervention has to move even close to the point of infection."

Researchers also examined the effects of cell death products upon B cells, another arm of the immune system responsible for the creation of antibodies. Previous studies have shown that the antibody response to HIV-1 is "too little, too late" appearing after the virus has peaked and after the reservoir of infected T cells has already been est
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