CD4 and infection: Regardless, the fact that we did not observe even a trend toward reduced apoptosis among GALT CD4+ T cells may reflect the fact that IL-7 is inactive against the direct cytopathic effect of the virus, which has been identified as the principal mechanism responsible for CD4+ T-cell depletion in the gut during the acute phase of the infection, whereas the role of apoptosis in this context remains controversial [1], [2].