Impact of the first-line antiretroviral therapy on soluble markers of inflammation in cohort of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 in Moroccan patients: a prospective study

Chronic inflammation and immune activation are a hallmark of HIV-1 infection. In this study, we assessed inflammation biomarkers in a cohort of people living with HIV-1 (PLWH) before and after long-term suppressive combined antiretroviral therapy (cART). A single-center prospective cohort study was conducted to assess inflammatory biomarkers in 86 cART-naive PLWH and after receiving suppressive cART and 50 uninfected controls. Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and soluble CD14 (sCD14) were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). No significant difference was found in IL-6 levels between cART-naïve PLWH and controls ( p = 0.753). In contrast, TNF-α level showed a significant difference between cART naïve-PLWH and controls ( p = 0.019). Interestingly, IL-6 and TNF-α levels were significantly decreased in PLWH after cART ( p < 0.0001). The sCD14 showed no significant difference between cART-naïve patients and controls ( p = 0.839) and similar levels were observed in pre- and post-treatment ( p = 0.719). Our results highlight the critical importance of early treatment to reduce inflammation and its consequences during HIV infection.