Mechanisms of transcriptional regulation of CCR5, which is the co-receptor for R5-tropic HIV and is also involved in other disease processes

C-C chemokine receptor type 5 (CCR5) is the R5-tropic human immunodeficiency virus type 1 or HIV co-receptor. Lower CCR5 levels can reduce T cell and macrophage susceptibility and suppress HIV infection. Moreover, CCR5Δ32 homozygous stem cell transplantation is central to HIV cure. Other studies have shown that CCR5 plays a vital role in cancer development and cell migration, and it was considered a potential therapeutic target for several types of malignancy. In addition to HIV and cancer, CCR5 also participates in immune response and plays a role in graft-versus-host disease in bone marrow transplant patients. It is also associated with other diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and rheumatoid arthritis. Thus, investigating its regulatory mechanisms is critically important for understanding the progress and therapeutics of other illnesses. Transcriptional regulation of genes is a complex process that controls when, where, and how much the RNA transcript is produced. In this minireview, we discuss epigenetic regulatory mechanisms, such as DNA methylation and histone modification, transcription factors, and signal transduction pathways, involved in the regulation of CCR5 transcripts.