The suppression of HIV-1 infection may be, in part due to its inhibitory effect on HIV-1 protease and partly due to the interference in interaction of viral Tat protein to the HIV-1 promoter sequence of LTR, which is also reflected by the expression of gene (luciferase) that is under the control of Tat-LTR mediated transactivation. The gene discussed is TAT; the disease is HIV-1 infection.