HIV Flashcards
Primary target of HIV?
Helper T cells
What is the viral load?
Measure in copies of virus per mL (copies/mL)
What is the goal of HIV tx/ART?
viral load below lab detection (< 20 copies/mL or < 2.00E+01 copies/mL)
T or F: HIV disproportionately affects affluent populations.
F
It affects marginalized ppl mostly
Why is HIV prevalence on the rise?
Less ppl are dying from HIV > more ppl living w/ AIDS alive
HIV is a …
a. DNA virus
b. RNA virus
b. RNA virus
HIV replicates by hijacking machinery of this cell.
CD4+ cells
What class of drugs are used to tx HIV?
ARVs (antiretrovirals)
What’re the three main drug targets of HIV viruses?
integrase, reverse transcriptase, and protease
What do each of the three main HIV enzymes do?
Reverse transcriptase: converts viral RNA to DNA
Integrase: allows HIV DNA to be inserted into CD4 DNA
Protease: breaks up immature proteins into protein chains that’re assembled into new virions that’re then ready to infect new cells
T or F: Despite having undetectable viral loads, inds are still considered infectious.
F
They’re no longer infectious
U=U meaning?
undetectable = untransmittable
How many copies/mL are considered “undetectable”?
< 20 c/mL
Normal CD4 levels in healthy inds?
500-1200 cells/mm^3
What level of CD4 is assoc w/ more advanced HIV dz?
< 200 cells/mm^3
During the course of an HIV infection, what is the name of the phase where Abs are made against the virus such that they can be detected?
Seroconversion
Describe symptoms of early/acute HIV infection.
Flu-like, self-resolving
Fever, h/a, rash, sore throat, D, wt loss, myalgia/arthralgia
How does AIDS develop?
When chronic, untx’ed HIV infection leads to CD4+ counts of < 200 cells/mm^3
What is a person likely to develop as a result of AIDS?
Opportunistic infections
T or F: AIDS is inevitable.
F
Best way to avoid AIDS?
Early tx with ARVs
Which specific organ system’s CD4+ cells are decimated early on during an HIV infection?
GI mucosal CD4+ cells
Why is immune function permanently damaged during an HIV infection, even with suppression via ART?
HIV causes scarring and collagen buildup in lymph nodes (permanent structural changes)
HIV infections are inherently _______
inflammatory
Reasons why CD4 counts would not recover despite ART
- chronic inflam
- lymphoid fibrosis
- hematopoietic progenitor cell loss
- thymic dysfn
How does HIV affect aging process?
It causes chronic inflammation > age faster
When would it be appropriate to perform an Ab test for HIV?
within 3-12 weeks post-infection
Why would one use antibody testing and p24 antigen testing?
differentiate b/w HIV-1 and HIV-2
