Pathogenesis of HIV-associated dementia and its potential drug targets

HIV-associated dementia (HAD) is a serious complication of AIDS patients. With the wide application of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the replication of HIV is under effective control and the incidence of HAD is also declined. However, a relatively mild HIV-associated symptom of dementia, called minor cognitively motor disorder (MCMD), become the problem and can not be neglected in the treatment of AIDS. The neural injury caused by HIV may be mediated mainly by macrophages, microglia and astrocytes, though we can not rule out the direct damage on neurons by HIV proteins. To date, the precise mechanism of neural damage caused by HIV remains unclear. The present review tries to figure out the recent progress of pathogenesis and potential drug targets for HAD.