The course of HIV-1 infection is typified by three phases; acute infection characterized by a rapid viraemia peak (3–6 weeks post-infection) followed by a rapid fall in virus levels, a stable chronic phase of variable length characterized by low level viraemia and slowly declining CD4+ T cell numbers, and a final stage (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, AIDS) characterized by multiple opportunistic infections and a rapid fall in CD4+ T cell count. Here, CD4 is linked to AIDS.