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Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) isolates differ in cell tropism, replication, pathogenicity, and syncytial induction in vitro. CD4+ T cells were enumerated in severe combined immunodeficient mice transplanted with human peripheral blood leukocytes (hu-PBL-SCID mice) and infected with HIV isolates with different in vitro cytopathicity. Two noncytopathic, macrophage-tropic strains, HIV-1SF162 and HIV-2UC1, induced extensive CD4+ T cell depletion, whereas HIV-1SF33, which is highly cytopathic for T cells in vitro, caused little CD4+ T cell depletion at equivalent virus burden. In vitro cytopathicity assays therefore do not predict CD4 depletion in the hu-PBL-SCID model.
Mosier et al. (Fri,) studied this question.