Is HIV infection a TNF receptor signalling-driven disease?

Abstract

Recent studies indicate that TNF (tumor necrosis factor) receptor signalling is a key player in HIV infection. HIV proteins have been shown to target TNF receptor signalling, leading both to apoptosis of uninfected bystander T cells and to sustained viral replication in infected T cells and macrophages. This article proposes a model that highlights the role of HIV proteins in the modulation of TNF receptor signalling and could explain both immune suppression and the formation of viral reservoirs during HIV infection.