Th2 predominance and CD8+ memory T cell depletion in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome.
The immune spectrum of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is poorly understood. To define the dynamics of the immune spectrum in SARS, serum levels of cytokines, chemokines, immunoglobulins, complement and specific antibodies against SARS-associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV) were assayed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), and phenotypes of peripheral lymphocytes were analyzed by flow cytometry in 95 SARS-infected patients. Results showed that interleukin (IL)-10 and transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) were continuously up-regulated during the entirety of SARS. Regulated on activation normally T cell-expressed and secreted (RANTES) levels were decreased, while monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) was elevated in acute patients. Immunoglobulins and complement were elevated during the first month of SARS. Both serum-positive rates and titers of specific IgM and IgG antibodies responding to SARS-CoV peaked at days 41-60 from the onset of SARS. CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes decreased significantly in acute-phase. CD3+CD8+CD45RO+ T lymphocytes were decreased by 36.78% in the convalescent patients.


CONCLUSIONS
SARS-CoV seemed to elicit effective humoral immunity but inhibited cellular immunity, especially CD8+ memory T lymphocytes over time. Prolonged overproduction of IL-10 and TGF-beta may play an important role in the disease.
Huang
Jia-Ling
JL
Cancer Institute, Cancer Center and World Health Organization (WHO) Cooperative Cancer Research Center, Cancer Center of Sun Yat-sen University, No. 651 Dongfeng Road East, Guangzhou 510060, China.
Huang
Jian
J
Duan
Zhao-Hui
ZH
Wei
Jing
J
Min
Jun
J
Luo
Xiao-Hong
XH
Li
Jian-Guo
JG
Tan
Wei-Ping
WP
Wu
Li-Zhi
LZ
Liu
Ran-Yi
RY
Li
Yan
Y
Shao
Jing
J
Huang
Bi-Jun
BJ
Zeng
Yi-Xin
YX
Huang
Wenlin
W
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000276:immunology*; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology
D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D016753:Interleukin-10