O-57: An in-vitro reconstructed vaginal mucosa integrating langerhans cells to evaluate the immuno-inflammatory potential of novel anti-HIV microbicides and spermicides

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Heterosexual human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission requires the dissemination of virus from the vaginal mucosa to T cell zones, potentially using Langerhans cells (LCs) as transporters. Repeated topical application of current vaginal spermicides and potential microbicides can increase the production of local inflammatory mediators leading to subclinical inflammation, which is associated with increased risk for HIV transmission. We assessed the effect of novel spermicidal and nonspermicidal anti-HIV microbicides on the production of mucosal cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors using an in vitro reconstructed vaginal mucosa integrating LCs.