{
  "abstract": "Transcriptional noise contributes to gene expression variability, but its origin and impact in HIV-1 latency remain incompletely characterized. Here, we combine a dual-copy MS2-tagging system with dedicated mathematical analysis to investigate the variability of HIV-1 transcription in live cells. In the basal state, the transcriptional activity of proviruses located in the same cell was uncorrelated, indicating that expression variability primarily comes from the intrinsic stochasticity of promoter dynamics. Upon stimulation with diverse latency-reversing agents, transcription of viral copies became more correlated within cells than across them, revealing a shift from promoter-driven to cell state-driven variability. Analysis of the molecular drug targets confirmed variable effects across cells. Our findings indicate that cellular heterogeneity can shape the response to latency-reversing agents and demonstrate how quantitative tools can dissect noise sources. This work offers mechanistic insights into HIV-1 latency and informs strategies to target the latent viral reservoir.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "IGH, University of Montpellier and CNRS, 141 Rue de la Cardonille, Montpellier 34094, France.",
    "LPHI, University of Montpellier, CNRS and INSERM, Place Eugene Bataillon, Montpellier 34095, France.",
    "Research and Analysis Platform in Environmental Sciences (EDST-PRASE), Lebanese University, Hadath P.O. Box 14-6573, Lebanon."
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 8,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Rachel Topno",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-4920-9599"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Hussein Karaki"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Flavia Mazzarda"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Oriane Pourcelot",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-0659-2778"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Manon Philippe",
      "orcid": "0009-0009-1039-3024"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Kazem Zibara",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9887-072X"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Ovidiu Radulescu",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-6453-5707"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Edouard Bertrand",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-9642-7994"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9m3hbpyfde2r9.bib",
  "cited_by": 1,
  "doi": "10.1126/sciadv.aeb1435",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "9m3hbpyfde2r9",
  "issns": [
    "2375-2548"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aeb1435",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "2406|HIV Research and Treatment"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7221148324",
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-09",
  "publisher": "American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9m3hbpyfde2r9.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:41Z",
      "native_id": "10.1126/sciadv.aeb1435",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aeb1435"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2406|HIV Research and Treatment",
      "subfield": "microbiology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Cell heterogeneity contributes to the variable response of HIV-1 to latency-reversing agents",
  "title_text": "Cell heterogeneity contributes to the variable response of HIV-1 to latency-reversing agents",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:17:41Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/9m3hbpyfde2r9",
  "venue": "Science Advances",
  "versions": []
}