FIG 8.

TNF-α neutralization blocks the HIV-1 replication in quiescent CD4⁺ T lymphocytes treated with exosomes from HIV-1-infected cells. A total of 10⁵ quiescent CD4⁺ T lymphocytes were challenged with 120 μU of exosomes from HIV-1-infected cells. Then, the cells were incubated for 6 h in the presence of the indicated amounts of anti-TNF-α neutralizing antibodies or unrelated, isotype-specific IgGs. Alternatively, the cells were treated with equal amounts of exosomes from 293T cells and then incubated with the highest dose of antibodies. Afterwards, the cells were infected with HIV-1 and then washed and reseeded in the presence of the antibodies. As a control, resting CD4⁺ T cells were treated with HIV-1 alone (Nil). Three days after challenges, the cells were analyzed for HIV-1 expression by FACS. Shown are the mean percentages of HIV-1 positive cells as calculated from duplicate conditions using cells from a representative of two healthy donors analyzed.