title: Limited secretory-IgA response in cervicovaginal secretions from HIV-1 infected, but not high risk seronegative women: lack of correlation to genital viral shedding.
abstract: The presence and antigen specificity of IgG and secretory-IgA (s-IgA) to HIV-1 were evaluated in cervicovaginal lavages (CVL) from 26 infected and 10 high-risk seronegative women. All the seropositive women had detectable IgG recognizing several viral antigens, while a smaller percentage of women demonstrated s-IgA to the virus. In addition, s-IgA were of limited specificity and provided weak reactivities on Immunoblot bands; an almost constant absence of s-IgA to gp120 was also observed. Neither the presence nor the specificity of either IgG or s-IgA to the virus in CVL prevented the shedding of HIV-1 in this body fluid; in fact, viral RNA was detected in all the women studied and the amounts of viral shedding was unrelated to the genital antibody response. On the other hand, none of the high-risk seronegative women had detectable antibodies to HIV-1 in CVL of either the IgG or s-IgA isotype. Our results a) confirm an impairment of mucosal antibody response during HIV-1 infection and suggest that mucosal immunity is not able to prevent viral shedding in the female genital tract and thus cannot modulate the infectivity of genital secretions; aa) do not provide evidence for a mucosal "memory/protective" antibody response in the genital tract of high-risk seronegative women.
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Bari, Italy.
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Fiore
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Laddago
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lepera
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: La Grasta
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Stefano
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saracino
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lopalco
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pastore
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Angarano
mesh_terms: D002584:Cervix Uteri / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D005260:Female; D015483:HIV Antibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D018023:HIV Seronegativity; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D018928:Immunity, Mucosal; D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D014621:Vagina / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D019562:Viral Load; D017201:Virus Shedding
chemical_list: D015483:HIV Antibodies; D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D012367:RNA, Viral