IFNL4 Genotype Does Not Associate with CD4 T-Cell Recovery in People Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus

Abstract

Immune non-responders are persons with HIV infection who fail to restore their CD4 T-cell counts in spite of prolonged virologic suppression, a condition associated with higher rates of all-cause mortality. The mechanisms of immune non-response are not entirely clear. We used existing clinical and genetic data from ACTG clinical trials to ask whether an IFNL4 single nucleotide polymorphism, shown to associate with outcomes for other infectious diseases, correlated with immune non-response for HIV. Analysis of data from 426 participants with clearly defined CD4 T-cell recovery phenotypes, including 88 immune non-responders with CD4 <200 cells/mm3 after 2 years of suppressive antiretroviral therapy, did not identify an association of IFNL4 genotype with immune non-response. Thus, IFNL4 genotype is unlikely to influence immunologic recovery.