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CCR5 is also the name of the Gene that codes for the CCR5 receptor. It is located on Chromosome 3 on the short (p) arm at position 21. A number of Allele s of the CCR5 gene exist. In particular, the Δ32 allele of CCR5 is of interest to microbiologists and medical researchers, as it offers protection against infection. About ten percent of Europeans have the Δ32 allele. It is thought that this allele was favored by natural selection during the Black Death . A number of new HIV drugs have been designed to interfere with the interaction between CCR5 and HIV, including PRO140 (Progenics), Vicriviroc (Schering Plough) and UK-427,857 (Pfizer). A potential problem of this approach is that CCR5 is the major, but not the only co-receptor by which HIV infects cells. It is possible that under selective pressure HIV will evolve to use another coreceptor. However, examination of viral resistance to AD101, molecular antagonist of CCR5, indicated that resistant viruses did not switch to another coreceptor (CXCR4) but persisted in using CCR5, either through binding to alternative domains of CCR5 or by binding to the receptor at a higher affinity. The role of CCR5 in normal immune function is unclear. Individuals with the Δ32 allele of CCR5 are healthy, suggesting that CCR5 is dispensable. CCR5 is predominantly expressed on T cells, macrophages, dendritic cells and microglia. It is likely that CCR5 plays a role in inflammatory responses to infection. Recently, CCR5 has been shown to mediate resistance to West Nile Virus infection in humans, as CCR5D32 individuals are enriched in cohorts of West Nile Virus symptomatic patients, indicating that all of the functions of CCR5 may not be compensated by other receptors EXTERNAL LINKS AND REFERENCES
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