= 0.041). Among PLWH, no association was found between T-cell reactivity and CDC stage at diagnosis. Our findings suggest that while PLWH with well-controlled infection retain dengue-specific T-cell memory, their response to structural antigens may be attenuated. Vaccination should be considered a key preventive strategy for this clinically vulnerable population. IMPORTANCE: The geographic expansion of dengue virus (DENV) transmission into temperate regions highlights the need to characterize immune responses in populations with chronic conditions such as HIV. Despite immune reconstitution under antiretroviral therapy (ART), people living with HIV (PLWH) may exhibit residual immune dysregulation that could affect DENV-specific immunity and clinical outcomes. In this study, we directly compared DENV-specific T-cell memory responses in PLWH and HIV-negative individuals following natural infection during an autochthonous outbreak. While PLWH mounted detectable cellular responses, reactivity to structural antigens (prM/E/C) was significantly reduced compared with HIV-negative participants. These findings indicate that qualitative differences in antigen-specific T-cell memory may persist despite virological suppression and immune recovery, with potential implications for protection upon re-exposure. Our results provide a rationale for evaluating dengue vaccination strategies in PLWH as local transmission becomes more frequent in non-endemic settings.
Lombardi et al. (Thu,) studied this question.