The Role of Early Life Programming in Vulnerability and Resilience in Relation to HIV

Despite significant advances in HIV/AIDS research, the disease still impacts millions of people worldwide. The psychosocial environment of the patient plays an important role in the disease progression. Psychological stress, mental health issues and lack of social support contribute to a poor prognosis, particularly in those patients with prior exposure to these risk factors. Early life stress is known to affect mental health and modulate neuroendocrine and immune function long term, influencing individual's vulnerability to adult stress and compromised health status. This increased susceptibility to the adverse effects of stress may in turn promote the rate of HIV disease progression. Understanding the possible interactions between early life experiences of an infected individual and their ability to cope with the diagnosis and health consequences of HIV infection may shed light on the underlying biological mechanisms contributing to the disease progression and, thus, to improve current therapeutic strategies.