title: Anti-CD4 antibodies in exposed seronegative adults and in newborns of HIV type 1-seropositive mothers: a follow-up study.
abstract: In this work, an ELISA for the quantitative determination of IgG anti-CD4 autoantibodies was validated and utilized in the follow-up of two cohorts of HIV-1-exposed seronegative subjects. A serum with an arbitrarily assigned concentration of 100,000 units/ml was used as a reference, and the detection limit, inter- and intraassay variability, and analytical recovery were calculated. The study subjects included adults sexually exposed to HIV-1-infected partners and the newborns of HIV-1+ mothers who seroreverted by 18 months of age. Some of these individuals were studied over an 18- to 24-month period. The detection limit of the assay was 2000 AU/ml. Intra- and interassay variability was, respectively, 3.92 and 3.90%. Analytical recovery in an assay in which a fixed amount of anti-CD4 antibodies was added to different samples was 98%. A proportion of adults (16 of 47, 34.0%) and babies (12 of 27, 44.4%) had significantly higher concentrations of anti-CD4 antibodies. Among them, 8 adults maintained the same concentration as that found in the first determination; on the other hand, 12 babies born to seronegative mothers showed a significant increase in the concentration of anti-CD4 antibodies during their first months of life. In conclusion, anti-CD4 antibodies can be measured using a validated ELISA. They represent a serologic trait that is quantitatively conserved in HIV-1-exposed seronegative adult individuals and is actively acquired by newborns to HIV+ mothers.
authors.affiliation: San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lopalco
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Magnani
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Confetti
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brianza
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saracco
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ferraris
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lillo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vegni
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lazzarin
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Siccardi
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Burastero
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000097:blood*; D015704:CD4 Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D018023:HIV Seronegativity / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000276:immunology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results
chemical_list: D001323:Autoantibodies; D015704:CD4 Antigens