Antiretroviral therapy suppresses the constitutive production of interleukin-1 associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Interleukin (IL)-1 is constitutively produced by monocytes of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-seropositive persons. The changes in the production of IL-1 by monocytes of 24 HIV-infected patients were investigated during the course of 8 months of antiretroviral therapy. At month 8, the amounts of biologically active IL-1 and IL-1 alpha and -beta proteins produced by freshly obtained monocytes and by monocytes cultured for 24 h in the absence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) decreased significantly compared with pretreatment values or decreased below the limits of detection in the assays. Antiretroviral therapy also resulted in enhanced secretion of IL-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) by LPS-stimulated patients' monocytes. The reduction in the constitutive production of IL-1 and the increased ability of stimulated cells to produce IL-1Ra associated with antiretroviral therapy may also be of importance in reducing a major pathway of amplification of viral replication in infected monocytes and lymphocytes.