Research Articles

In vitro production of type 1 and type 2 cytokines by peripheral blood mononuclear cells from subjects coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus and Leishmania infantum

To explore the type 1 and type 2 cytokine profile in cases coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and Leishmania infantum, production of interleukin-4 (IL-4), interleukin-10 (IL-10), interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and interleukin-2 receptor (IL-2R) was investigated in mitogen-stimulated and unstimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cell cultures from eight HIV/Leishmania coinfected subjects matched with eight anti-HIV-positive subjects with no evidence of Leishmania coinfection. Levels of IL-4 and IL-2R increased significantly from the baseline levels in the peripheral blood mononuclear cell supernatants of HIV/Leishmania coinfected subjects following stimulation with phytohemoagglutin, whereas the postchallenge concentration of IFN-gamma was significantly increased in the HIV-infected group. The levels of IL-4 and IL-10 were significantly higher in the HIV/Leishmania group throughout evaluation. Post-stimulation IFN-gamma production was significantly higher in the HIV-positive group in comparison with that of the HIV-Leishmania coinfected subjects. These observations support the notion that a Th2 cytokine response is present during a Leishmania infection, even among HIV-coinfected individuals.

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				J. Alvar, P. Aparicio, A. Aseffa, M. Den Boer, C. Canavate, J.-P. Dedet, L. Gradoni, R. Ter Horst, R. Lopez-Velez, and J. Moreno The Relationship between Leishmaniasis and AIDS: the Second 10 Years Clin. Microbiol. Rev., April 1, 2008; 21(2): 334 - 359. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]