Viral outcome of simian-human immunodeficiency virus SHIV-89.6P adapted to cynomolgus monkeys.

Simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV) 89.6P is considered to be one of the most pathogenic chimeric viruses in rhesus macaques. However, when crossing from one to another species of monkeys the pathogenicity of this virus may be affected. By using SHIV-89.6P(cy243), a virus obtained by passaging SHIV-89.6P in cynomolgus macaques, we investigated the dynamics of viral replication and the impact of the inoculum size (from 10 up to 50 monkey infectious dose) on the progression of the infection in 22 cynomolgus macaques. SHIV-89.6P(cy243 )caused massive depletion of CD4+ T-cells within 4 weeks of the inoculum, followed by an irreversible immune deficiency in a high proportion of the infected monkeys. This study demonstrates that SHIV-89.6P(cy243) is pathogenic in cynomolgus macaques and that the dynamics of the viral replication and the rate of clinical progression depend on the size of the inoculum. Our findings provide unique and relevant data, particularly with regard to the value of the in vivo titration used to select the most appropriate infectious dose to study the "virus-host" interplay.