| 1. |
- Skogmar, Sten, et al.
(författare)
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Plasma Levels of Neopterin and C-Reactive Protein (CRP) in Tuberculosis (TB) with and without HIV Coinfection in Relation to CD4 Cell Count
- 2015
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - : PUBLIC LIBRARY SCIENCE. - 1932-6203. ; 10:12, s. e0144292-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background While the risk of TB is elevated in HIV-positive subjects with low CD4 cell counts, TB may in itself be associated with CD4 lymphocytopenia. We investigated markers of immune activation (neopterin) and inflammation (CRP) in TB patients with and without HIV coinfection and their association with CD4 cell levels, and determined their predictive capacity as alternative markers of advanced immunosuppression. Methods Participants selected from a cohort of adults with TB at Ethiopian health centers (195 HIV +/TB+, 170 HIV-/TB+) and 31 controls were tested for plasma levels of neopterin and CRP. Baseline levels of neopterin and CRP were correlated to CD4 cell count before and after anti-TB treatment (ATT). The performance to predict CD4 cell strata for both markers were investigated using receiver operating curves. Results Levels of both biomarkers were elevated in TB patients (neopterin: HIV+/TB+ 54 nmol/l, HIV-/TB+ 23 nmol/l, controls 3.8 nmol/l; CRP: HIV+/TB+ 36 mu g/ml, HIV-/TB+ 33 mu g/ml, controls 0.5 mu g/ml). Neopterin levels were inversely correlated (-0.53, p<0.001) to CD4 cell count, whereas this correlation was weaker for CRP (-0.25, p<0.001). Neither of the markers had adequate predictive value for identification of subjects with CD4 cell count <100 cells/mm(3) (area under the curve [AUC] 0.64 for neopterin, AUC 0.59 for CRP). Conclusion Neopterin levels were high in adults with TB, both with and without HIV coinfection, with inverse correlation to CD4 cell count. This suggests that immune activation may be involved in TB-related CD4 lymphocytopenia. However, neither neopterin nor CRP showed promise as alternative tests for immunosuppression in patients coinfected with HIV and TB.
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| 2. |
- Tesfaye, Fregenet, et al.
(författare)
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Longitudinal Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific Interferon Gamma responses in Ethiopian HIV-negative women during pregnancy and postpartum
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Clinical Microbiology. - 0095-1137. ; 59:10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pregnancy may influence cellular immune responses to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. We investigated M. tuberculosis-specific interferon-g responses in women followed longitudinally during pregnancy and postpartum. Interferon-g levels (stimulated by M. tuberculosis antigens [TB1 and TB2] and mitogen included in the QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus assay) were measured in blood from pregnant HIV-negative women identified from a prospective cohort at Ethiopian antenatal care clinics. Longitudinal comparisons included women without active tuberculosis (TB) with M. tuberculosis-triggered interferon-g responses of $ 0.20 IU/ml, sampled on two and/or three occasions (1st/2nd trimester, 3rd trimester, and 9 months postpartum). Among 2,093 women in the source cohort, 363 met inclusion criteria for longitudinal comparisons of M. tuberculosis-stimulated interferon-g responses. Median M. tuberculosis-triggered interferon-g concentrations were higher at 3rd than those at the 1st/2nd trimester (in 38 women with samples available from these time points; TB1: 2.8 versus 1.6 IU/ml, P = 0.005; TB2: 3.3 versus 2.8 IU/ml, P = 0.03) and postpartum (in 49 women with samples available from these time points; TB1: 3.1 versus 2.2 IU/ml, P = 0.01; TB2: 3.1 versus 2.3 IU/ml, P = 0.03). In contrast, mitogen-stimulated interferon-g levels were lower at 3rd than those at 1st/2nd trimester (in 32 women with samples available from these time points: 21.0 versus 34.9 IU/ml, P = 0.02). Results were similar in 22 women sampled on all 3 occasions. In HIV-negative women, M. tuberculosis-stimulated interferon-g responses were higher during the 3rd trimester than those at earlier stages of pregnancy and postpartum, despite decreased mitogen-triggered responses. These findings suggest increased M. tuberculosis-specific cellular responses due to dynamic changes of latent TB infection during pregnancy.
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| 3. |
- Borggren, Marie, et al.
(författare)
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R5 human immunodeficiency virus type 1 with efficient DC-SIGN use is not selected for early after birth in vertically infected children
- 2013
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Ingår i: The Journal of general virology. - : Microbiology Society. - 1465-2099 .- 0022-1317. ; 94:Pt 4, s. 767-773
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The binding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) to C-type lectin receptors may result in either enhanced trans-infection of T-cells or virus degradation. We have investigated the efficacy of HIV-1 utilization of DC-SIGN, a C-type lectin receptor, in the setting of intrauterine or intrapartum mother-to-child transmission (MTCT). Viruses isolated from HIV-1-infected mothers at delivery and from their vertically infected children both shortly after birth and later during the progression of the disease were analysed for their use of DC-SIGN, binding and ability to trans-infect. DC-SIGN use of a child’s earlier virus isolate tended to be reduced as compared with that of the corresponding maternal isolate. Furthermore, the children’s later isolate displayed enhanced DC-SIGN utilization compared with that of the corresponding earlier virus. These results were also supported in head-to-head competition assays and suggest that HIV-1 variants displaying efficient DC-SIGN use are not selected for during intrauterine or intrapartum MTCT. However, viruses with increased DC-SIGN use may evolve later in paediatric HIV-1 infections.
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| 4. |
- Buggert, Marcus, et al.
(författare)
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CD4+ T cells with an activated and exhausted phenotype distinguish immunodeficiency during aviremic HIV-2 infection
- 2016
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Ingår i: AIDS. - 0269-9370. ; 30:16, s. 2415-2426
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE:: HIV-2 represents an attenuated form of HIV, where many infected individuals remain “aviremic” without antiretroviral therapy (ART). However, aviremic HIV-2 disease progression exits, and in the current study we therefore aimed to examine if specific pathological characteristics of CD4+ T cells are linked to such outcome. DESIGN:: HIV-seronegative (n=25), HIV-1 (n?=?33), HIV-2 (n?=?39, of whom 26 were aviremic), and HIV-1/2 dually (HIV-D) (n?=?13) infected subjects were enrolled from an occupational cohort in Guinea-Bissau. METHODS:: CD4+ T cell differentiation, activation, exhaustion, senescence, and transcription factors were assessed by polychromatic flow cytometry. Multidimensional clustering bioinformatic tools were used to identify CD4+ T cell subpopulations linked to infection type and disease stage. RESULTS:: HIV-2-infected individuals had early- and late-differentiated CD4+ T cell clusters with lower activation (CD38+HLA-DR+) and exhaustion (PD-1) than HIV-1 and HIV-D-infected subjects. We also noted that aviremic HIV-2-infected individuals possessed fewer CD4+ T cells with pathological signs compared to other HIV-infected groups. Still, compared to HIV-seronegatives, aviremic HIV-2-infected subjects had T-bet+ CD4+ T cells that showed elevated immune activation/exhaustion, and particularly the frequencies of PD-1+ cells were associated with suboptimal percentage of CD4+ T cells. CONCLUSIONS:: Increased frequencies of CD4+ T cells with an activated/exhausted phenotype correlate with exacerbated immunodeficiency in aviremic HIV-2-infected individuals. Thus, these findings encourage studies on the introduction of ART also to individuals with aviremic HIV-2 infection.
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| 5. |
- Bächle, Susanna M., et al.
(författare)
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Elevated levels of iNKT cell and NK cell activation correlate with disease progression in HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections
- 2016
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Ingår i: AIDS. - 0269-9370. ; 30:11, s. 1713-1722
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE:: In this study we aimed to investigate the frequency and activation of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells and natural killer (NK) cells among HIV-1, HIV-2, or dually HIV-1/HIV-2 (HIV-D)-infected individuals, in relation to markers of disease progression. DESIGN:: Whole blood samples were collected from treatment-naïve HIV-1 (n?=?23), HIV-2 (n?=?34) and HIV-D (n?=?11) infected individuals, as well as HIV-seronegative controls (n?=?25), belonging to an occupational cohort in Guinea-Bissau. METHODS:: Frequencies and activation levels of iNKT and NK cell subsets were analysed using multi-colour flow cytometry and results were related to HIV-status, CD4+ T cell levels, viral load, and T cell activation. RESULTS:: HIV-1, HIV-D, and viremic HIV-2 individuals had lower numbers of CD4+ iNKT cells in circulation compared to seronegative controls. Numbers of CD56 NK cells were also reduced in HIV-infected individuals as compared to control subjects. Notably, iNKT cell and NK cell activation levels, assessed by CD38 expression, were increased in HIV-1 and HIV-2 single, as well as dual, infections. HIV-2 viremia was associated with elevated activation levels in CD4+ iNKT cells, CD56 and CD56 NK cells, as compared to aviremic HIV-2 infection. Additionally, disease markers such as CD4+ T cell percentages, viral load, and CD4+ T cell activation were associated with CD38 expression levels of both iNKT and NK cells, which activation levels also correlated with each other. CONCLUSIONS:: Our data indicate that elevated levels of iNKT cell and NK cell activation are associated with viremia and disease progression markers in both HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections.
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| 6. |
- Dispinseri, Stefania, et al.
(författare)
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Continuous hiv-1 escape from autologous neutralization and development of cross-reactive antibody responses characterizes slow disease progression of children
- 2021
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Ingår i: Vaccines. - : MDPI AG. - 2076-393X. ; 9:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The antibodies with different effector functions evoked by Human Immunodeficiency Virus type 1 (HIV-1) transmitted from mother to child, and their role in the pathogenesis of infected children remain unresolved. So, too, the kinetics and breadth of these responses remain to be clearly defined, compared to those developing in adults. Here, we studied the kinetics of the autologous and heterologous neutralizing antibody (Nab) responses, in addition to antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), in HIV-1 infected children with different disease progression rates followed from close after birth and five years on. Autologous and heterologous neutralization were determined by Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC)-and TZMbl-based assays, and ADCC was assessed with the GranToxiLux assay. The reactivity to an immunodominant HIV-1 gp41 epitope, and childhood vaccine antigens, was assessed by ELISA. Newborns displayed antibodies directed towards the HIV-1 gp41 epitope. However, antibodies neutralizing the transmitted virus were undetectable. Nabs directed against the transmitted virus developed usually within 12 months of age in children with slow progression, but rarely in rapid progressors. Thereafter, autologous Nabs persisted throughout the follow-up of the slow progressors and induced a continuous emergence of escape variants. Heterologous cross-Nabs were detected within two years, but their subsequent increase in potency and breadth was mainly a trait of slow progressors. Analogously, titers of antibodies mediating ADCC to gp120 BaL pulsed target cells increased in slow progressors during follow-up. The kinetics of antibody responses to the immunodominant viral antigen and the vaccine antigens were sustained and independent of disease progression. Persistent autologous Nabs triggering viral escape and an increase in the breadth and potency of cross-Nabs are exclusive to HIV-1 infected slowly progressing children.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Esbjörnsson, Joakim, et al.
(författare)
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HIV-2 as a model to identify a functional HIV cure
- 2019
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Ingår i: AIDS Research and Therapy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1742-6405. ; 16:1
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two HIV virus types exist: HIV-1 is pandemic and aggressive, whereas HIV-2 is confined mainly to West Africa and less pathogenic. Despite the fact that it has been almost 40 years since the discovery of AIDS, there is still no cure or vaccine against HIV. Consequently, the concepts of functional vaccines and cures that aim to limit HIV disease progression and spread by persistent control of viral replication without life-long treatment have been suggested as more feasible options to control the HIV pandemic. To identify virus-host mechanisms that could be targeted for functional cure development, researchers have focused on a small fraction of HIV-1 infected individuals that control their infection spontaneously, so-called elite controllers. However, these efforts have not been able to unravel the key mechanisms of the infection control. This is partly due to lack in statistical power since only 0.15% of HIV-1 infected individuals are natural elite controllers. The proportion of long-Term viral control is larger in HIV-2 infection compared with HIV-1 infection. We therefore present the idea of using HIV-2 as a model for finding a functional cure against HIV. Understanding the key differences between HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections, and the cross-reactive effects in HIV-1/HIV-2 dual-infection could provide novel insights in developing functional HIV cures and vaccines.
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| 9. |
- Esbjörnsson, Joakim, et al.
(författare)
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Increased survival among HIV-1 and HIV-2 dual-infected individuals compared to HIV-1 single-infected individuals
- 2014
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Ingår i: AIDS. - 1473-5571. ; 28:7, s. 949-957
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: To compare survival times of HIV-1 single and HIV-1 and HIV-2 dual-infected individuals. Design: Prospective open cohort study. Methods: We analysed data from 259 HIV-1-seroincident cases (either HIV-1 single or HIV-1 and HIV-2 dual-infected) from a cohort with long follow-up (similar to 20 years) in order to study the influence of type of infection and infection order on mortality. Sex and age at HIV-1 infection date was controlled for in a Cox proportional-hazards model. Results: Dual-infected individuals had a 42% longer time from HIV-1 infection to death compared with single-infected individuals, adjusting for age asymmetries between groups. Dual-infected individuals with an HIV-2 infection preceding the HIV-1 infection had a more than two-fold lower mortality risk during follow-up than HIV-1 single-infected individuals. Conclusion: Survival time is longer and the risk of progression to death is lower among HIV-1 and HIV-2 dual-infected individuals compared to HIV-1 single-infected individuals. This natural inhibition could have implications for the development of future HIV-1 vaccines and therapeutics.
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| 10. |
- Esbjörnsson, Joakim, et al.
(författare)
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Inhibition of HIV-1 disease progression by contemporaneous HIV-2 infection.
- 2012
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Ingår i: New England Journal of Medicine. - 0028-4793 .- 1533-4406. ; 367:3, s. 224-232
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Progressive immune dysfunction and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) develop in most persons with untreated infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) but in only approximately 20 to 30% of persons infected with HIV type 2 (HIV-2); among persons infected with both types, the natural history of disease progression is poorly understood. METHODS: We analyzed data from 223 participants who were infected with HIV-1 after enrollment (with either HIV-1 infection alone or HIV-1 and HIV-2 infection) in a cohort with a long follow-up duration (approximately 20 years), according to whether HIV-2 infection occurred first, the time to the development of AIDS (time to AIDS), CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell counts, and measures of viral evolution. RESULTS: The median time to AIDS was 104 months (95% confidence interval [CI], 75 to 133) in participants with dual infection and 68 months (95% CI, 60 to 76) in participants infected with HIV-1 only (P=0.003). CD4+ T-cell levels were higher and CD8+ T-cell levels increased at a lower rate among participants with dual infection, reflecting slower disease progression. Participants with dual infection with HIV-2 infection preceding HIV-1 infection had the longest time to AIDS and highest levels of CD4+ T-cell counts. HIV-1 genetic diversity was significantly lower in participants with dual infections than in those with HIV-1 infection alone at similar time points after infection. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that HIV-1 disease progression is inhibited by concomitant HIV-2 infection and that dual infection is associated with slower disease progression. The slower rate of disease progression was most evident in participants with dual infection in whom HIV-2 infection preceded HIV-1 infection. These findings could have implications for the development of HIV-1 vaccines and therapeutics. (Funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency-Swedish Agency for Research Cooperation with Developing Countries and others.).
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