All patients enrolled in the present study did not participate in phase I treatment of MSC as previously reported.14 The clinical variables, including age, sex, weight, BMI (body mass index), HIV infection route, diagnosis time, ART duration, viral load, immune parameters (e.g., CD4 count, CD8 count, CD4/CD8 ratio), first-line treatment regimen, and the proportion of change to the second-line treatment regimen were all matched between the three groups. The gene discussed is CD8A; the disease is HIV infectious disease.