Figure 4.

Ex vivo protection after SHIV challenge. Vaginal (A, B) and rectal (C, D) explants were obtained from rhesus macaques after 2 hours of exposure to SF‐only or SF‐Grft discs. Unchallenged explants from all animals were used as viral negative controls (Ctrl), while ex vivo SHIV‐challenged explants from macaques that received SF‐only were used as virus‐positive controls (SHIV). Explants obtained from animals that received SF‐only (Silk + SHIV) or to SF‐Grft (Silk + Grft + SHIV) were challenged ex vivo with SHIV. Inhibitory activity of Grft was assessed in tissue explant culture supernatants by ELISA at (A, C) peak of p27 concentration and (B, D) across 15 days of culture as area under the curve of p27 concentration between days 3 and 15 (AUCp27 d3‐d15). Data shown are means (± standard deviations) of at least triplicate explants for each condition for each animal from each group (n = 5 control animals, n = 3 SF‐disc exposed animals, n = 5 SF‐Grft dosed animals).