Th1/Th2 balance and HTLV-I proviral load in HAM/TSP patients treated with interferon-alpha.
We studied the immunological and virological effects of interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) therapy in nine patients with HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM/TSP). After therapy, the percentages of CCR5+ cells in CD4+ cells significantly decreased in the cerebrospinal fluid as well as blood. The therapy also significantly lowered the intracellular IFN-gamma+/interleukin-4+ T-cell ratio in blood. Those helper T-cell type 1 (Th1)-related responses tended to be higher and reduce more evidently following therapy in three patients who clinically improved. Also, all the three patients had one or more HTLV-I copies in five blood mononuclear cells. These results suggest that IFN-alpha suppresses Th1 responses in HAM/TSP and that the patients with higher Th1 immunity and proviral loads may be responders of the therapy. Larger-scale studies are needed to confirm the findings.
Feng
Juan
J
Department of Neurology, Tohoku University School of Medicine 1-1 Seiryomachi, Aobaku, Sendai 980-8574, Japan.
Misu
Tatsuro
T
Fujihara
Kazuo
K
Misawa
Naoko
N
Koyanagi
Yoshio
Y
Shiga
Yusei
Y
Takeda
Atsushi
A
Sato
Shigeru
S
Takase
Sadao
S
Kohnosu
Takeshi
T
Saito
Hiroshi
H
Itoyama
Yasuto
Y
D000368:Aged; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004351:Drug Resistance / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D015368:Human T-lymphotropic virus 1 / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D007424:Intracellular Fluid / Q000737:chemistry; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015493:Paraparesis, Tropical Spastic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011533:Proviruses / Q000276:immunology*; D054397:Receptors, CCR3; D019713:Receptors, CCR5 / Q000378:metabolism; D054367:Receptors, CXCR3; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine / Q000378:metabolism; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D019562:Viral Load
D000998:Antiviral Agents; C515350:CCR3 protein, human; C515187:CXCR3 protein, human; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D054397:Receptors, CCR3; D019713:Receptors, CCR5; D054367:Receptors, CXCR3; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine; D015847:Interleukin-4; D007371:Interferon-gamma