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. 2021 Jun 24;22(10):645–657. doi: 10.1038/s41576-021-00378-0

Fig. 3. CCR5 expression modifies HIV progression.

Fig. 3

a | A 32-bp deletion in CCR5 (CCR5Δ32) results in the reduced expression of CC-chemokine receptor 5 (CCR5) on the surface of target cells. Heterozygous individuals exhibit reduced CCR5 expression, lower set point viral loads (spVLs) and slower disease progression. Individuals carrying two defective copies of the CCR5 gene show no surface expression and are highly resistant to HIV infection. Additionally, rs1015164, a single nucleotide polymorphism downstream of CCR5, affects cell surface levels of CCR5. In homozygous reference (A/A) and heterozygous (A/G) individuals, the surface expression of CCR5 is normal, whereas G/G homozygous individuals have a lower CCR5 surface expression and lower spVLs. b | rs1015164 regulates the expression of an antisense RNA termed CCR5-AS. When CCR5-AS (orange) is expressed at high or intermediate levels in homozygous reference (A/A) and heterozygous (A/G) individuals, respectively, CCR5 mRNA (blue) is protected from RALY-mediated degradation and results in normal levels of surface expression. In G/G homozygous individuals, CCR5-AS expression is diminished and CCR5 mRNA is degraded, resulting in lower surface expression at the cellular level and a lower spVL overall. lncRNA, long non-coding RNA.