Lung granulomas from Mycobacterium tuberculosis/HIV-1 co-infected patients display decreased in situ TNF production.
Tuberculosis/HIV-1 co-infection is responsible for thousands of deaths each year, and previous studies have reported that co-infected individuals display major morphological alterations in tissue granulomas. The purpose of this study was to evaluate immunohistopathological characteristics in lung tissues from pulmonary TB/HIV-1-co-infected individuals. Following autopsy, tuberculosis-positive HIV-1-negative cases displayed granulomas with normal architecture, mainly composed of a mononuclear infiltrate with typical epithelioid, as well as giant cells, and exhibiting caseous necrosis. In contrast, lesions from the TB/HIV-1-co-infected group showed extensive necrosis, poorly formed granulomas, and a marked presence of polymorphonuclear cells. More importantly, TNF staining was greatly reduced in the TB/HIV-1-co-infected individuals. Our data suggest that HIV-1 infection alters the organization of pulmonary granulomas by modulating TNF and, possibly, cell trafficking, leading to an impaired anti-tuberculosis response.
de Noronha
Almério L L
AL
Centro de Pesquisas Goncalo Moniz, Fiocruz, Bahia, Brazil; Faculdade de Medicina da Bahia, UFBA, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
Báfica
André
A
Nogueira
Lucas
L
Barral
Aldina
A
Barral-Netto
Manoel
M
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D015769:Granuloma, Respiratory Tract / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D015497:HIV-1; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis*
D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha