The CC or beta-chemokines MIP-1alpha, MIP-1beta, and RANTES are the primary components of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-suppressive soluble factors in vitro. We studied the relationship between the concentrations of MIP-1alpha, MIP-1beta, and RANTES in plasma and HIV viral load in HIV-infected subjects. The HIV-positive patient group (n = 140) had significantly lower concentrations of all three beta-chemokines (MIP-1alpha, P < 0.0005; MIP-1beta, P < 0.005; RANTES, P < 0.0005) than the control group (n = 58 for MIP-1alpha, n = 27 for MIP-1beta, and n = 59 for RANTES). In addition, we divided the patient group into three subgroups (high, moderate, and low) based on the number of HIV-1 RNA copies in the plasma (as measured by quantitative HIV RNA PCR). Again, all three subgroups had significantly lower concentrations of the beta-chemokines than the HIV-negative control group. However, there was no significant difference in plasma beta-chemokine concentrations among the three subgroups within the patient group (P < 0.3). Although our results demonstrate that HIV-infected individuals had significantly lower concentrations of circulating beta-chemokines than healthy uninfected control subjects, we found no correlation between the concentrations of beta-chemokines in plasma and HIV-1 viral load in HIV-infected individuals.