Atherosclerosis: pathogenesis and increased occurrence in individuals with HIV and Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection

Timothy Guilford¹, Devin Morris^2,4, Dennis Gray^3,4, Vishwanath Venketaraman^3,4
1Your Energy Systems, Palo Alto, CA, USA; ²Graduate of College of Biomedical Sciences, ³College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, ⁴Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA, USA

Abstract: Atherosclerosis is a leading cause of coronary heart disease and stroke. Since 1981, more than 980,000 cases of AIDS have been reported in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more than 1 million Americans may be infected with HIV. By killing or damaging CD4+ T cells of the body’s immune system, HIV progressively destroys the body’s ability to fight infections. People diagnosed with AIDS often suffer from life-threatening diseases caused by opportunistic infections such as tuberculosis. HIV-infected individuals have increased risks for atherosclerosis. This review summarizes the effects of oxidized low density lipoproteins in impairing macrophage functions in individuals with atherosclerosis (with and without HIV infection) thereby enhancing the susceptibility to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.

Keywords: AIDS, HIV, Mycobacterium tuberculosis