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Updated: Mar 8, 2026

Peptide-based Identification of Functional Motifs and their Binding Partners

Peptide-based Identification of Functional Motifs and their Binding Partners

Published on: June 30, 2013

Thymic Function Failure Is Associated With Human Immunodeficiency Virus Disease Progression.

Sara Ferrando-Martinez¹, Rebeca S De Pablo-Bernal², Marta De Luna-Romero²

¹Immunology Laboratory, Vaccine Research Center, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.

Clinical Infectious Diseases : an Official Publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America

|February 4, 2017

Summary

Assessing thymic function using the signal-joint/DβJβ T-cell rearrangement excision circles (sj/β-TREC) ratio reveals its critical role in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease progression. Lower thymic function is linked to faster CD4 T-cell decline and poorer outcomes in HIV patients.

Keywords:

HIV disease progression LTNP sj/β-TREC ratio thymic function vertical infection

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Area of Science:

Immunology
Virology
T-cell biology

Background:

Assessing thymic function in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients is challenging due to reliance on peripheral markers affected by T-cell expansion.
The signal-joint/DβJβ T-cell rearrangement excision circles (sj/β-TREC) ratio offers a more direct measure of thymic output but requires validation in larger cohorts.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the role of thymic function, quantified by the sj/β-TREC ratio, in maintaining CD4 T-cell counts.
To analyze the association between thymic function and HIV disease progression across diverse patient groups and age ranges.

Main Methods:

Analyzed 774 patients with varying HIV progression rates (typical progressors, long-term nonprogressors, vertically infected).
Quantified thymic function using the sj/β-TREC ratio in peripheral blood.
Employed statistical models (linear, logistic, Cox proportional hazard) to assess associations with CD4 T-cell dynamics and combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) initiation.

Main Results:

Thymic function failure (sj/β-TREC ratio <10) was independently associated with HIV progression.
Patients with high CD4 T-cell counts and slow progression (e.g., vertically infected, LTNP, HIV controllers) exhibited higher thymic function.
Thymic function failure correlated with lower CD4 T-cell levels, lower nadir counts, and accelerated CD4 T-cell decay.

Conclusions:

This study confirms the significance of thymic function, measured by sj/β-TREC ratio, in HIV disease progression across a large, diverse patient population.
Findings elucidate mechanisms underlying HIV progression and support the rationale for early cART initiation.