ABSTRACT

Drugs of abuse, such as opiates, are one of the leading causes for transmission of HIV in many parts of the world. Drug abusers often face a higher risk of acquiring HIV because target cell (CD4+ T-cell) receptor expression differs in response to morphine, a metabolite of common opiates. In this study, we use a viral dynamics model that incorporates the T-cell expression difference to formulate the probability of infection among drug abusers. We quantify how the risk of infection is exacerbated in morphine conditioning, depending on the timings of morphine intake and virus exposure. With in-depth understanding of the viral dynamics and the increased risk for these individuals, we further evaluate how preventive therapies, including pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis, affect the infection risk in drug abusers. These results are useful to devise ideal treatment protocols to combat the several obstacles those under drugs of abuse face.

摘要

滥用药物，如阿片类药物，是世界许多地区传播艾滋病毒的主要原因之一。吸毒者通常面临更高的感染 HIV 风险，因为靶细胞（CD4+ T 细胞）受体表达对吗啡（一种常见阿片类药物的代谢物）的反应不同。在这项研究中，我们使用病毒动力学模型，该模型结合了 T 细胞表达差异来计算吸毒者感染的概率。我们根据吗啡摄入和病毒暴露的时间，量化了吗啡条件下感染风险的加剧。随着对病毒动态和这些人风险增加的深入了解，我们进一步评估了包括暴露前和暴露后预防在内的预防性治疗如何影响吸毒者的感染风险。