Cellular immune responses in HIV-negative immunodeficiency with anti-interferon-γ antibodies and opportunistic intracellular microorganisms

• Main Authors: Wipasa,J., Wongkulab,P., Chawansuntati,K., Chaiwarit,R., Supparatpinyo,K.
• Format: Article
• Published: Public Library of Science 2015
• Subjects: Medicine (all); Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (all); Agricultural and Biological Sciences (all)
• Online Access: http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?partnerID=HzOxMe3b&scp=84908153004&origin=inward; http://cmuir.cmu.ac.th/handle/6653943832/38322
• Institution: Chiang Mai University

© 2014 Wipasa et al. Background: Cell-mediated immunity plays a crucial role in resistance to intracellular infection. We previously reported antibodies against interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) in HIV- negative (HIV-) patients with acquired immunodeficiency presenting with repeated episodes of disseminated infection caused by uncommon opportunistic intracellular fungal, bacterial, and viral pathogens. This follow-up study aimed to investigate cellular immune responses in these unusual patients. Copyright: Methods: Twenty HIV- patients presenting with ≥2 episodes of culture- or histopathologic-proven opportunistic infections were enrolled along with age- and sex-matched controls comprised of 20 HIV+ patients plus 20 healthy adults. Monocyte phenotyping and intracellular cytokine production were determined by staining with specific antibodies followed by flow cytometry. Anti-interferon-γ antibodies were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and inducible nitric oxide synthase by reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Results: There were no differences among cases, HIV+, and healthy controls in the percentage of monocytes, or CD68 and HLA-DR expression on their surfaces. FcR1 (CD119) expression on monocytes was significantly higher in cases than in HIV+ (p<0.05) and healthy controls (p<0.01), suggesting the presence of activated monocytes in the circulation. Interleukin (IL)-2 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α production in CD4 cells were significantly lower in cases than in healthy controls (p<0.01 and p<0.001, respectively). CD8 production of TNF-α among cases was significantly lower than that of healthy controls (p< 0.05). Conclusion: Immunodeficiency in HIV- individuals with repeated infections with intracellular pathogens may be associated with one or more of the abnormal immune responses reflected by the reduced production of both IL-2 by CD4 T cells and TNF-α by CD4 T cells and CD8 T cells, as well as presence of anti-IFN-γ antibody, as previously reported.