One of the many adverse consequences of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is the increase in the rate of lymphocyte cell death (Badley AD, Blood. 2000; 96:2951-64). Increased lymphocyte death is associated with the level of activation of the immune system (Gougeon ML. Nat Rev Immunol. 2003: 3:392-404), along with the disregulation of the cytokine network and a plethora of cytotoxic effects induced by HIV proteins (Badley AD, Blood. 2000; 96:2951-64). Hence, cell death can be observed in vivo not only in CD4+ cells, which are the main target of HIV, but also in CD8 T cells. Current knowledge suggest that immune activation and different mechanisms of cell death play a determinant role in T-lymphocyte (CD4+) loss during HIV infection and recovery after HAART (Bofill M et al AIDS. 1996 :827-34).