Escape from CD8 ⁺ T cell responses in Mamu-B*00801 ⁺ macaques differentiates progressors from elite controllers

A small number of HIV-infected individuals known as elite controllers experience low levels of chronic phase viral replication and delayed progression to AIDS. Specific HLA class I alleles are associated with elite control, implicating CD8 ⁺ T lymphocytes in the establishment of these low levels of viral replication. Most HIV-infected individuals that express protective HLA class I alleles, however, do not control viral replication. Approximately 50% of Mamu-B*00801 ⁺ Indian rhesus macaques control SIVmac239 replication in the chronic phase in a manner that resembles elite control in humans. We followed both the immune response and viral evolution in SIV-infected Mamu-B*00801 ⁺ animals to better understand the role of CD8 ⁺ T lymphocytes during the acute phase of viral infection, when viral control status is determined. The virus escaped from immunodominant Vif and Nef Mamu- B*00801-restricted CD8 ⁺ T lymphocyte responses during the critical early weeks of acute infection only in progressor animals that did not control viral replication. Thus, early CD8 ⁺ T lymphocyte escape is a hallmark of Mamu-B*00801 ⁺ macaques who do not control viral replication. By contrast, virus in elite controller macaques showed little evidence of variation in epitopes recognized by immunodominant CD8 ⁺ T lymphocytes, implying that these cells play a role in viral control.