TITLE:
Greater Expansion of IFN-γ﹣ CD4+ NKT Cells in HIV-1 Compared with HIV-2-Infected Subjects with Preserved CD4+ T Cell Counts
AUTHORS:
Samuel V. Nuvor, Hilton Whittle, Sarah Rowland-Jones, Assan Jaye
KEYWORDS:
NKT Cells; HIV-1; HIV-2; IFN-g; CD4 T Cells
JOURNAL NAME:
World Journal of AIDS,
Vol.2 No.2,
June
15,
2012
ABSTRACT: Context: Human Natural Killer T cells are T lymphocytes that express an invariant αβ T cells receptors and NK cells receptors. They regulate innate and adaptive immune response but are susceptible to HIV-1 infection. Objective: We compare the frequency and the activity of NKT cells in HIV-1 and HIV-2 infected individuals with CD4+ counts greater than 500/mm3 using flow cytometry after overnight stimulation with phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Results: The frequency of NKT cells was similar between both groups and also to sero-negative control subjects. There were also no significant differences in the proportions of total NKT cells and the CD4+ NKT subset that secreted interferon gamma (IFN-γ) after polyclonal stimulation. However, there was a significantly higher frequency of IFN-γ﹣ CD4+ NKT cells in HIV-1-infected compared with HIV-2 infected subjects (p = 0.043). Conclusion: These data suggest there is no relationship between the functional activity of NKT cell subsets and the total NKT cell population in HIV infection. The expansion of IFN-γ﹣ CD4+ NKT cells in HIV-1 infection may serve as target for viral infection and may eventually result in their depletion during chronic infection.