Hu-SCID: A model for the evaluation of vaginal microbicides

Abstract

There is a need of new approaches to test and develop vaginal microbicides with antiviral specificity. We are studying a hu-SCID mouse animal model of vaginal transmission of HIV-1. Vaginal infection was performed using SCID mice reconstituted intraperitoneally with 3 × 107 human PBMC. At day 0 the mice were treated with 5mg of progestin and followed at day 7 by a non invasive vaginal administration of 1 × 106 PBMC previously infected in vitro with NSI stain of HIV-1. Systemic infection was investigated after two weeks post-inoculation collecting different samples: plasma, spleen cells, lymph-nodes cells, peritoneal cells and supernatants from lavage. Plasma viral load and p24 antigen detection were evaluated by using the amplicor HIV-1 monitor kit and cocoltivation, respectively. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis was performed on DNA extracted from tissues (spleen, lymph-nodes, peritoneal cells) to determine the presence of proviral copies using specific primers for HIV-1. In our experiments transmission was established using NSI virus infected cells inoculated vaginally as shown by either PCR results or plasma and peritoneal fluid viral load and p24 antigen detection. This hu-SCID mouse model may prove useful to test the activity of compounds against HIV and sexually transmitted diseases.