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. 1991;4(8):760-5.

Transepithelial transport of HIV-1 by intestinal M cells: a mechanism for transmission of AIDS

H M Amerongen  1 , R Weltzin, C M Farnet, P Michetti, W A Haseltine, M R Neutra
Affiliations
  • PMID: 1856788

Transepithelial transport of HIV-1 by intestinal M cells: a mechanism for transmission of AIDS

H M Amerongen et al. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr (1988). 1991.

Abstract

This study was designed to determine whether human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) might enter the host by penetrating epithelial barriers through antigen-transporting M cells in lymphoid follicle-associated epithelia. Interaction of HIV-1 with epithelial cells was examined using mucosal explants from Peyer's patches of mice and rabbits. HIV-1 adhered to the luminal membranes of M cells of both species, and was endocytosed and delivered to intraepithelial spaces containing lymphocytes and macrophages. These observations suggest that M cells, which are numerous in the human rectal mucosa, may efficiently deliver HIV-1 to target cells in mucosal lymphoid tissue, and that such transport may contribute to sexual transmission of AIDS.

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