IMMUNOLOGIC FEATURES OF AIDS

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1986. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

IMMUNOLOGIC FEATURES OF AIDS

AIDS. Etiology, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prevention. DeVita VT, Hellman S, Rosenberg SA, eds. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Company, p. 89-109, 1985.. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE ICDB/86616575
Bowen DL; Lane HC; Fauci AS; Lab. of Immunoregulation, Natl. Inst. of Allergy and Infectious; Diseases, NIH, Bethesda, MD

Abstract: The etiologic agent of the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) has been recently identified as a retrovirus of the human T-cell leukemia/lymphoma virus (HTLV) family, HTLV-III. It is likely that this virus is identical with lymphadenopathy-associated virus (LAV). Immunologic features of AIDS are discussed under the following headings: immunologic dysfunction in AIDS (leukopenia; T-lymphocyte dysfunction; cytotoxic abnormalities; alterations in monocyte function; B-lymphocyte dysfunction), serologic alterations in AIDS, laboratory tests of immunity in AIDS, immunologic dysfunction in the AIDS-related complex, immune function in high-risk groups, and HTLV and altered immunity in AIDS. The immunologic abnormalities in AIDS and its related conditions are diverse and involve both cellular and humoral immunity. The most striking abnormality, which is both quantitative and qualitative, is the defect in the helper/inducer T-lymphocyte defined by the monoclonal antibody T4. Many of the abnormalities described in AIDS can be explained on the basis of HTLV-III and depletion of the T4 lymphocyte. Because of the intricate network between the T4 lymphocyte subset and other components of cellular immunity, cytopathic infection with HTLV-III permits vast, indirect alterations of immune function. Control of AIDS will develop from a more complete understanding of the immunopathogenesis of HTLV-III infection and its variable expression of lymphoproliferation or lymphodepletion with severe immunosuppression. (80 Refs)

Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/*IMMUNOLOGY Antibodies, Viral/ANALYSIS Antibody Formation B-Lymphocytes/*IMMUNOLOGY Human HTLV-BLV Viruses/IMMUNOLOGY Immunity, Cellular Immunoglobulins/IMMUNOLOGY Killer Cells, Natural/IMMUNOLOGY Male Monocytes/IMMUNOLOGY Retroviridae Infections/*IMMUNOLOGY Risk T-Lymphocytes/*IMMUNOLOGY MONOGRAPH REVIEW

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