FIG 1.

TLR2 triggering enhances HIV-1 replication in CD3/CD28-costimulated CD4⁺ T cells. Purified primary human CD4⁺ T cells were subjected to CD3/CD28 costimulation either in the absence or presence of the TLR2 agonist Pam3CSK4. (A) Cells were incubated with NL4.3 Balenv, and virus production was estimated at the indicated time points by measuring the p24 content in cell-free supernatants. (B) Cells were inoculated with NL4.3 Bal-IRES-HSA reporter virus, and the percentages of cells productively infected with HIV-1 (i.e., HSA⁺) were evaluated by flow cytometry. Data shown in panel A represent the means ± standard deviations (SD) of duplicates for a representative donor out of four. Each symbol shown in panel B represents a different donor, with the horizontal line depicting the means for all donors tested. Statistical analyses were made using ratio paired t test and one-way ANOVA, followed by a Dunnett's multiple-comparison test. Asterisks denote statistically significant data (**, P ≤ 0.01).