This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Worldwide, the vast majority of HIV-1 cases occur through heterosexual transmission. Although the initial events involved in vaginal transmission are uncertain, studies suggest that dendritic cells in the vaginal epithelium may be involved in trapping viral particles on the surface and transporting them to CD4+ T lymphocytes in the mucosa. As a collaborative, multicenter trial with the Center for HIV and AIDS vaccine Initiative (CHAVI) we are starting studies to determine the earliest target cells and events involved in vaginal HIV transmission using the macaque model of SIV/HIV transmission. We are currently vaginally inoculating macaques with a fluorescent HIV virus produced by our collaborator Tom Hope and will be examining vaginal and cervical tissues to visualize individual virions in the mucosal surfaces. Using new technologies, we expect to determine the earliest target cells involved in vaginal transmission, which should help to develop better vaccine and microbicide strategies.
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