1. Decreased CD127 expression on T Cells in HIV-1-infected adults receiving antiretroviral therapy with or without intermittent IL-2 therapy
- Author
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Randy Stevens, Julia A. Metcalf, H. Clifford Lane, Adam Rupert, Jeanette Higgins, Irini Sereti, Sarah W. Read, and Martha Nason
- Subjects
Interleukin 2 ,Adult ,Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Anti-HIV Agents ,medicine.medical_treatment ,T-Lymphocytes ,Statistics as Topic ,HIV Infections ,Gastroenterology ,Internal medicine ,Immunopathology ,Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active ,Medicine ,Cytotoxic T cell ,Humans ,Pharmacology (medical) ,IL-2 receptor ,Interleukin-7 receptor ,Aged ,Receptors, Interleukin-7 ,business.industry ,Interleukin-7 ,virus diseases ,Receptors, Interleukin-2 ,T lymphocyte ,Immunotherapy ,Middle Aged ,Flow Cytometry ,Lymphocyte Subsets ,Infectious Diseases ,Cytokine ,Immunology ,Multivariate Analysis ,Interleukin-2 ,Female ,business ,medicine.drug - Abstract
BACKGROUND The interleukin-7 (IL-7)/IL-7 receptor alpha (IL-7Ralpha) system is an important regulator of T-cell homeostasis. We evaluated the IL-7/IL-7Ralpha system in a large cohort of HIV-infected patients, including a subset treated with intermittent IL-2. METHODS IL-7 serum levels and CD127 (IL-7Ralpha) expression on T cells were evaluated in a cross-sectional study of 36 healthy volunteers, 151 HIV-infected patients, and 83 HIV-infected patients who had received IL-2 therapy. Multivariate regression models were used to determine predictors of CD127 expression. RESULTS HIV-infected patients had higher IL-7 levels compared with healthy volunteers (P = 0.022) and IL-2-treated patients (P = 0.012). CD127 expression was significantly lower on CD4 and CD8 T cells of HIV-infected patients compared with healthy volunteers (P = 0.008 and P < 0.001, respectively), and CD127 median fluorescence intensity was lowest on CD4 T cells in IL-2-treated patients (P < 0.001 compared with HIV-infected patients). The proportion of naive and effector memory/effector T cells were significant predictors of CD127 expression on T cells. IL-2 immunotherapy led to the expansion of a CD25/CD127-low subset of CD4 T cells. CONCLUSIONS CD127 expression on T cells remains low in HIV-infected patients despite antiretroviral therapy, reflecting persistent aberration in the subset composition of the T-cell pool.
- Published
- 2006