Correlation of central memory CD4+ T-Cell decrease in the peripheral blood with disease progression in
Zhe Cong1, Jing Xue1, Jing Xiong1
1Institute of Laboratory Animal Science, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS) and Comparative Medicine Center, Peking Union Medical College (PUMC), Key Laboratory of Human Disease Comparative Medicine, Beijing, China.
Background:
Correlation of CD4(+) Tcm cells in the peripheral blood to disease progression in SIVmac251 infection was examined in Chinese rhesus macaques.
Methods:
Plasma viral RNA loads were measured by a quantitative real-time reverse transcription-PCR (qRT-PCR) assay for SIV gag. Disease progression was determined based on time of survival. Phenotyping of CD4(+) T-cell subsets in the peripheral blood was longitudinally performed by flow cytometry.
Results:
Although CD4(+) T-cell decrease and low CD4(+)/CD8(+) T-cell ratio in the peripheral blood after SIVmac251 infection did not correlate with disease progression, CD4(+) Tcm cell decrease was observed to be correlated to disease progression in the SIVmac251-infected Chinese rhesus macaques.
Conclusions:
Our findings suggest that CD4(+) Tcm cell decrease could be used as a predictive marker for defining the pathogenesis of the SIV disease and consequently HIV/SIV vaccine efficacy in Chinese rhesus macaques.
