title: Immunohistochemical evaluation of T cells in oral lesions from human immunodeficiency virus-positive persons with oropharyngeal candidiasis.
abstract: Oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC), caused by Candida albicans, is the most frequent opportunistic fungal infection in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive persons. Although Th1-type CD4(+) T cells are considered important for host defense against mucosal C. albicans infections, there is a paucity of information regarding the presence and/or role of T cells in OPC lesions. In pursuit of this, initial chromophore immunohistochemical studies showed a majority of CD8(+) rather than CD4(+) cells equally distributed throughout the buccal mucosa of OPC(-) persons (HIV(-) or HIV(+)), irrespective of blood CD4(+) cell numbers. In contrast, CD8(+) cells in lesions from HIV(+) OPC(+) persons were in significantly higher numbers and concentrated at the lamina propria-epithelium interface, a considerable distance from the Candida at the outer epithelium. Dual fluorescence and confocal microscopy confirmed that the majority of CD8(+), but not CD4(+), cells were T cells by the presence or absence, respectively, of CD3 on each cell type. These results suggest that CD8(+) T cells may be important for oral host defense against OPC, especially when CD4 cell numbers are reduced, with a potential CD8 cell-specific dysfunction associated with susceptibility to OPC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Parasitology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and School of Dentistry, New Orleans 70112, USA.
authors.forename: Tammy A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.forename: Janet E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Leigh
authors.forename: Alfredo R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Arribas
authors.forename: Shannon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hager
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Clark
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lilly
authors.forename: Paul L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Fidel
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D017252:CD3 Complex / Q000378:metabolism; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000276:immunology*; D002180:Candidiasis, Oral / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D017252:CD3 Complex