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Amplifying and Quantifying HIV-1 RNA in HIV Infected Individuals with Viral Loads Below the Limit of Detection by Standard Clinical Assays
Published on: September 26, 2011
Quantitative and qualitative abnormalities in HIV-1-specific T cells
N Watanabe1, M Tomizawa, A Tachikawa-Kawana
1Division of Infectious Diseases, Advanced Clinical Research Center, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Insights
HIV-1 infection causes quantitative and qualitative abnormalities in CD4 and CD8 T cells specific for HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigens. Treatment with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) further reduces these vital immune cells.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Virology
- Infectious Diseases
Background:
- HIV-1 infection significantly impacts the immune system, particularly T cells.
- Understanding antigen-specific T cell responses is crucial for assessing immune function in HIV-1 patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus (CMV)-specific CD4 and CD8 T cells.
- To compare these T cell populations in untreated versus treated HIV-1-infected individuals.
Main Methods:
- Antigen-specific T cell frequencies were quantified using flow cytometry.
- Intracellular cytokine production was measured to identify T cell responses.
Main Results:
- Untreated patients showed significantly lower HIV-1-specific CD4 T cells compared to CMV-specific CD4 T cells.
- HIV-1-specific CD8 T cell counts were similar for both viruses in untreated patients.
- Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for less than 1.5 years led to reduced HIV-1-specific CD4 and CD8 T cell counts.
- HIV-1-specific CD8 T cells exhibited lower perforin expression than CMV-specific CD8 T cells.
Conclusions:
- HIV-1 infection is associated with quantitative and qualitative deficits in HIV-1-specific T cells.
- These abnormalities persist even with short-term HAART treatment.
- The findings highlight immune dysregulation in HIV-1-infected individuals.
Objective:
To assess the characteristics of CD4 and CD8 T cells specific for HIV-1 and cytomegalovirus (CMV) antigens in untreated and treated HIV-1-infected patients.
Methods:
Antigen-specific T cell frequencies were determined by flow cytometric detection of antigen-induced intracellular cytokines.
Results:
In untreated patients, HIV-1-specific CD4 T cell counts in peripheral blood were less than one tenth of CMV-specific CD4 T cell counts, while the number of specific CD8 T cells was approximately the same for both HIV-1 and CMV. In patients treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for less than 1.5 years, HIV-1-specific CD4 and CD8T cell counts were significantly lower than those in untreated patients. Perforin expression in HIV-1-specific CD8 T cells was significantly lower than that in CMV-specific CD8 T cells.
Conclusion:
These data indicate that HIV-1-specific T cells in HIV-1-infected patients have quantitative and qualitative abnormalities.
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