T cell Activation does not drive CD4 decline in longitudinally followed HIV-infected Elite Controllers

Background:
Elite controllers (EC) are a rare subset of HIV infected individuals who control viral load below 50 copies/ml of plasma without treatment.
Methods:
Thirty four EC were studied. The slope of CD4 count change was available for 25 of these subjects. We assessed immune activation by measuring the percent of CD38+HLA-DR+CD8+ T cells in the EC group and comparing it with that in 24 treatment-naive HIV disease progressors and 13 HIV uninfected healthy controls.
Results:
Compared to HIV uninfected subjects, EC had higher percentages of CD38+HLA-DR+CD8+ T cells (p Conclusions:
Elevated immune activation in ECs is not associated with a faster rate of CD4 decline