In this exciting symposium, the editor brings to print important new information on AIDS and how HIV affects the brain. Each chapter focuses on one or more of the cell types that reside in or traffic through the central nervous system (CNS). Each of these cells is important to considerations of the pathogenesis of the CNS. Neurologists, AIDS physicians, and other professionals caring for AIDS patients will find that this "cell-based" view provides a unique perspective and that it will guide and stimulate future investigation of this clinically important and pathogenetically intriguing disorder. The editor also introduces some general considerations for therapeutic intervention of AIDS dementia complex (ADC).The contributors to The Cellular Basis of Central Nervous System HIV-1 Infection and the AIDS Dementia Complex deal with the cells and mechanisms involved in HIV-1 brain infection and the resultant ADC. Each author was asked to review the involvement of their assigned cells in CNS HIV-1 infection and how these cells might be involved in the pathology and process of brain injury associated with ADC. Readers will be enlightened on the functional roles of various cells and how these cells and mechanisms might fit into the broader picture of ADC pathogenesis.