Prednisolone mediated suppression of HIV-1 viral load strongly correlates with C-C chemokine CCL2: In vivo and in vitro findings

CCL2 (MCP-1) is a proinflammatory chemokine induced in HIV-1 infection. We have previously demonstrated a significant correlation of CCL2 gene expression with HIV-1 viremia. In this study we investigated the effect of prednisolone on CCL2 gene expression and viral load in an HIV-1-infected patient receiving high-dose prednisolone for severe uveitis. We observed a > 1 log reduction of HIV-1 viral load, associated with more than hundred fold reduction of CCL2 expression at day 3 of prednisolone treatment. In vitro HIV-1 infection of PBMC demonstrated reduced HIV-1 replication in the presence of prednisolone. Flow cytometric analysis revealed 50% reduction of LTR driven GFP activity by prednisolone in GHOST cells. These findings indicate that prednisolone suppresses both HIV-1 viral load and CCL2 mRNA expression, an association which might be exploited for future anti-inflammatory therapeutic strategies in HIV-1 infection.