Related Experiment Videos
HIV antigen-reactive T cells detected by antigen-induced interferon gamma secretion
F Lolli1, L B Chen, V A Sundqvist
1Department of Virology, National Bacteriological Laboratory, Solna, Stockholm, Sweden.
AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses
|February 1, 1994
Summary
This study investigated T cell responses to HIV antigens in infected patients. Advanced disease correlated with fewer T cells recognizing HIV, cytomegalovirus, and tuberculosis antigens.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Virology
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- The T cell repertoire is crucial for controlling viral infections like HIV.
- Understanding T cell responses to specific HIV antigens is key to developing effective immunotherapies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the T cell repertoire against various HIV antigens in individuals with different stages of HIV infection.
- To assess T cell reactivity to cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (PPD) as comparative immune markers.
Main Methods:
- Enumeration of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) secreting T cells after in vitro stimulation with five HIV recombinant antigens and an HIV V3 loop peptide.
- Parallel assessment of T cell responses to CMV and PPD antigens.
- Analysis of T cell reactivity across different clinical stages of HIV infection.
Main Results:
- 48% of HIV-infected patients exhibited T cell recognition of at least one HIV antigen.
- T cell responses varied, with no single HIV antigen being immunodominant.
- A trend towards lower numbers of HIV-reactive T cells was observed in patients with more advanced disease.
- CMV- and PPD-reactive T cell numbers were also reduced in advanced HIV stages.
Conclusions:
- The T cell repertoire to HIV is diverse and patient-specific.
- Disease progression in HIV infection is associated with a diminished T cell response to viral and opportunistic pathogen antigens.
- The described methodology can be adapted to study T cell specificities and other cytokines, like interleukin-4, in various immune contexts.