title: The effect of highly active antiretroviral therapy for HIV on the anti-HCV specific humoral immune response.
abstract: The effect of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) on HCV replication is controversial, with some studies reporting no effect and others increases, reductions and even clearances of HCV RNA after treatment. In this study, the effect of HAART was investigated on the titre of anti-HCV specific antibodies and on the relationship between these antibodies and HCV RNA level in a cohort of 24 patients with inherited bleeding disorders. A significant inverse correlation between antibodies to both total HCV proteins and HCV RNA (R = -0.42, P = 0.05) and between antibodies to HCV envelope glycoproteins and HCV RNA (R = -0.54, P = 0.01) was observed pre-HAART. The relationship disappeared or was obscured after therapy (R = 0.24, P = 0.30 and R = 0.16, P = 0.50, respectively). Thus, we show that HAART affects the HCV specific humoral immune responses without affecting the HCV RNA level.
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology, Royal Free and University College Medical School, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Esteban
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Herrero-Martínez
authors.forename: Caroline A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Sabin
authors.forename: Christine A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Ian M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Deenan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pillay
authors.forename: Vincent C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Emery
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D023241:Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000502:physiology; D006467:Hemophilia A / Q000150:complications*; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications / Q000276:immunology*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000097:blood*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D018411:Spodoptera; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D019562:Viral Load; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D012367:RNA, Viral; D014759:Viral Envelope Proteins; D015678:Viral Structural Proteins; C107842:protein E1, Classical swine fever virus; C091015:glycoprotein E2, Hepatitis C virus