Autophagy restricts HIV-1 infection

Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV-1) is a retrovirus that targets cells from the immune system such as the CD4 T lymphocytes, the macrophages and the dendritic cells (DCs). Although these host cells possess various defense mechanisms to fight this infection, HIV-1 has evolved multiple strategies to counteract them. For the past ten years, researchers have been focused on the identification of HIV-1 restriction factors and their mode of action for the development of new therapeutic strategies [1].