Cytokine serum levels in patients infected by human immunodeficiency virus with and without Trypanosoma cruzi coinfection

• Autor(a) principal: Rodrigues,Denise Bertulucci Rocha
• Data de Publicação: 2005
• Outros Autores: Correia,Dalmo, Marra,Mônica Dias, Giraldo,Luis Eduardo Ramirez, Lages-Silva,Eliane, Silva-Vergara,Mario León, Barata,Cristina Hueb, Rodrigues Junior,Virmondes
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Texto Completo: http://old.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0037-86822005000600007
• topic: Cytokine; Chagas' disease; Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome; Trypanosoma cruzi

This study assessed the number of CD4 T lymphocytes, the parasitemia and serum levels of interferon gamma (IFN-gamma), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-4 and IL-10 of patients infected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and human immunodeficiency virus/Chagas' disease coinfection. CD4 T lymphocytes were low in the two groups of patients, although significantly lower in patients without Chagas' disease. Serum levels of IFN-gamma, IL-4 and TNF-alpha were significantly higher in patients with HIV/Chagas' disease. IL-4/IFN-gamma ratios were higher in patients with HIV/Chagas' disease, which showed a clear balance in favor of Th2-like cytokines in this group of patients. This Th2 balance was higher in patients with detectable parasitemia. We conclude that, although immunosuppression was observed, with CD4 T lymphocytes bellow 200/µm³, these patients did not display reactivation of T. cruzi infection and that a balance favorable to Th2 was associated with the presence of parasitemia.