Immune response characterization in HIV/HCV co-infected patients of medicine tropical foundation

The epidemiology of co-infection of human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis C virus (HIV/HCV) is around 30 to 60%. Approximately one third of HIV infected shows C hepatitis, with a high rate in hemophiliacs and drug users. Recent publications demonstrated that HIV positive patients co-infection with HCV have a co-factor to develop AIDS. The purpose of this study was evaluate the cellular and humoral immune response and cytokines in HIV/HCV co-infected patients in Foundation of Tropical Medicine of Amazonas.

After consent term assignature, the population of T lymphocytes CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ was analyzed in the whole blood by flow cytometry and a blood sample was take to measure the serum concentration of inflammatory cytokines (interleucine -- IL - 6, 8 and tumoral necrosis factor alpha-TNF-α), cytokines of T_H1 (IL-12, Interferon gamma-IFN-γ) cytokines T_H2 (IL-4) and suppression cytokine (IL-10) using ELISA BD OptEIA^®kit.

As for CD4⁺T cells 72.2% had < 500 cls/mm3 with a median of 271 cls/mm3, on the T CD8⁺ 88.9% had ≥215 cls/mm3 with a median of 794.5 cls/mm3. The ratio CD4⁺/CD8⁺ was 0.32 cls/mm3. When the dose cytokines IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IL-12 and IFN-γ in the patients found that only the IL-6 (p =< 0.001) showed statistical significance especially when correlated to the logarithm of the HCV viral load (0.031).

The results found in this study, despite the low prevalence, have annual growth of co-infection due to improvement in the research of hepatitis C in patients with HIV and the IL-6 cytokine was important marked of inflammation in this studied population.

FHEMOAM, FAPEAM.