Circulating Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in HIV-infected patients and its relation with primary brain lymphoma.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) load at different HIV infection stages and its relation with brain lymphoma.


METHODS
A cross-sectional study was conducted on 172 HIV-infected individuals: 62 asymptomatic HIV carriers (group A), 30 HIV progressors (group B), 73 AIDS patients (group C), seven AIDS patients with brain lymphoma (group C-BL); and 26 blood donors (group BD) as healthy carriers. EBV load was measured in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and plasma samples using a semi-quantitative PCR method.


RESULTS
PBMC-EBV levels in HIV-infected patients were higher than in the blood donors (p<0.05). No differences in PBMC-EBV loads were found in groups A, B, or C (p>0.05), while the C-BL group had significantly lower levels (p<0.05). Similar PBMC-EBV loads were seen in HIV-infected patients with CD4+ T cell counts higher than 50/mm(3) (p>0.05), while significantly lower levels were found in cases with less than 50 cells/mm(3) (p<0.05). In all HIV-infected patients, plasma-EBV load was lower than, or similar to, PBMC-EBV load, unlike 2/7 HIV-positive brain lymphoma patients.


CONCLUSIONS
During HIV infection PBMC-EBV load rises in comparison to healthy carriers, but decreases when immunosuppression progresses and CD4+ T cell count becomes <50/mm(3). Circulating EBV is mainly cell-associated in the HIV-infected population. Neither PBMC-EBV nor plasma-EBV loads would be useful to diagnose brain lymphoma in AIDS patients.
Fellner
María Dolores
MD
Servicio Virus Oncogénicos, Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Infecciosas (INEI)- ANLIS Dr. Carlos G. Malbrán, Av. Velez Sársfield 563, C 1282AFF Buenos Aires, Argentina. oncovir1@anlis.gov.ar
Durand
Karina
K
Correa
Rita Mariel
RM
Redini
Liliana
L
Yampolsky
Claudio
C
Colobraro
Antonio
A
Sevlever
Gustavo
G
Teyssié
Angélica R
AR
Benetucci
Jorge
J
Picconi
María Alejandra
MA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000821:virology*; D016516:CD4-CD8 Ratio; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000821:virology*; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D016483:Lymphoma, AIDS-Related / Q000150:complications / Q000821:virology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D019562:Viral Load