Lack Of Therapeutic Efficacy Of An Antibody To Alpha(4)Beta(7) Sivmac251-Infected Rhesus Macaques

Sustained virologic control of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection after discontinuation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) is a major goal of the HIV-1 cure field. A recent study reported that administration of an antibody against alpha(4)beta(7) induced durable virologic control after ART discontinuation in 100% of rhesus macaques infected with an attenuated strain of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) containing a stop codon in nef. We performed similar studies in 50 rhesus macaques infected with wild-type, pathogenic SIVmac251. In animals that initiated ARTduring either acute or chronic infection, anti-alpha(4)beta(7) antibody infusion had no detectable effect on the viral reservoir or viral rebound after ART discontinuation. These data demonstrate that anti-alpha(4)beta(7) antibody administration did not provide therapeutic efficacy in the model of pathogenic SIVmac251 infection of rhesus macaques.