RNA-seq of HIV bnAb and control individuals PBMC

We sought to determine differences in transcript expression between a cohort of HIV-infected individuals that either developed broadly neutralizing antibodies (bnAb) or did not develop them (control). With the ultimate goal to identify transcripts that are associated with the development of bnAbs that would identify novel pathways that could be targeted in future vaccine strategies to increase the frequency of individuals that develop bnAbs against HIV. Using this approach we identified that Rab11 recycling endosomes, particularly in dysfunctional natural killer cells are associated with the development of HIV-1 bnAbs. Overall design: RNA extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 95 subjects was subject to RNA-seq for transcriptome analysis comparing individuals that developed HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibodies to those that did not develop them (control).