Designing robust control-based HIV-treatment

Abstract

Designing a robust control-based treatment for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients was studied. The dynamics of the immune system’s response to infection was modelled using a 5th order nonlinear model with separate efficacy coefficients for protease inhibitor (PIs) and reverse transcriptase inhibitors (RTIs). The immune res-ponse has been represented as an uncertain system due to errors in parameter estimation and the existence of un-modelled dynamics. A polytopic system was constructed incorporating all possible system parameter values. A con-trol system was designed using robust pole location techniques stabilising the polytopic system around an equilibrium point having a low viral load. Numerical simulation results (including the organism’s pharmacokinetical response to anti-retroviral drugs) showed that the control law could lead to long-term stable conditions, even in extreme cases.

Keywords

• robust control
• polytopic system
• HIV
• AIDS
• mathematical model
• immune system dynamics