HIV-1 promotes a generalized immune activation that involves the main targets of HIV-1 infection but also cells that are not sensitive to viral infection. ECs display major dysfunctions in HIV+ patients during long-standing viral infection that persist even in the current cART era, in which new-generation drugs have reduced dysmetabolic side effects and successfully impeded viral replication. In vivo studies have failed to demonstrate the presence of replicating virus in ECs suggesting that a direct role of the virus is unlikely, and implying that the mechanism accounting for vascular dysfunction may rely on the indirect action of molecules released in the microenvironment by HIV-1-infected cells. This article reviews the current understanding of how HIV-1 infection can contribute to vascular dysfunction. In particular, we discuss the emerging role played by different HIV-1 proteins in driving inflammation and EC dysregulation, and highlight the need to target them for therapeutic benefit.
Keywords: Cytokines; Endothelial cells; HIV-1; Inflammation; Vascular dysfunction; Viral proteins.