SIV infection disrupts the spatial cellular and communication networks of pulmonary granulomas during SIV/Mtb co-infection
(Mtb) is the leading infectious cause of death globally. Despite wide use of antiretroviral therapy (ART) by people living with HIV, the risk of TB remains increased. To understand immune interactions within lung granulomas, we compared spatial transcriptomics of Mtb and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) in co-infected macaques with or without ART as a model for HIV/Mtb co-infection. Spatially differentiated transcriptional profiles were observed in Mtb-only granulomas, with myeloid cells enriched in metabolic/antimicrobial pathways within the inner ring and T cell costimulatory/activation pathways enriched in the outer ring. These spatially distinct patterns were lost in SIV/Mtb granulomas with higher enrichment in type I IFN pathways compared to Mtb-only granulomas. SIV/ART/Mtb granulomas had an intermediate transcriptional pattern without restoration to Mtb-only granulomas, despite a lack of viral replication. Cell-cell communication was reduced among SIV/Mtb co-infected groups. These data suggest that HIV disrupts spatially organized immune functions of granulomas, which are not fully restored by ART.
Authors
- Collin R. Diedrich (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7635-9699)
- Jessica Marie Medrano (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4422-8416)
- Joshua T. Mattila (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6384-1291)
- Philana Ling Lin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5169-3714)
- Pauline A Maiello (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5188-8420)
- Tara Rutledge
- Jishnu Das (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5747-064X)
- Zandrea Ambrose (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8610-2766)
- Christopher Kline (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1025-9430)
- Persis Sunny (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-5940-5821)
- Edwin Klein
Institutions
- University of Pittsburgh (US)
- Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
- Published
- 2026-04-25
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.04.24.720743
- Primary Topic
- Tuberculosis Research and Epidemiology
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
- National Institutes of Health
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases