ANXA5 and infectious disease: With respect to the role of AnxA5 in infectious diseases, the infectivity of HIV-1 for human macrophages is decreased in the presence of AnxA5.106 Moreover, PS and a non-phospholipid component of the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) envelope are involved in AnxA5 binding and HBV infection.110 The disruption by AnxA5 of PS-mediated signals might be utilized for therapeutic interventions in a multitude of infectious diseases in which apoptotic mimicry causes silent phagocytosis of – and tolerance to – the pathogenic agent (see above).