title: Dynamics of T cell activation accompanying CD4 recovery in antiretroviral treated HIV-infected Ugandan children.
abstract: Africans have elevated T cell activation compared to residents of Europe or the USA. Levels of T cell activation also correlate with disease progression in HIV-infected individuals. We sought to determine if treatment with antiretroviral therapy (ART) would reduce levels of T cell activation (CD38 and HLADR co-expression) in HIV-infected Ugandan children. The median CD8+ T cell activation level among 199 ART-treated children (30%) was lower than in 57 ART-naïve children (45%, p<0.001), but remained higher than in 30 HIV-uninfected children (18%, p<0.001). Among ART-treated children, CD4% was inversely correlated with both CD8- (rho=-0.61, p<0.001) and CD8+ (rho=-0.38, p<0.001) T cell activation. Prospectively, CD4 recovery correlated with post-treatment CD8+ T cell activation level (p=0.008). Our data suggest that significant decreases in T cell activation accompany CD4 recovery in ART-treated HIV-infected African children, to levels that approach but do not reach those of uninfected children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Division of Infectious Disease, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143-0136, USA. ruelt@peds.ucsf.edu
authors.forename: Theodore
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ruel
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ssewanyana
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Achan
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gasasira
authors.forename: Moses R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Kamya
authors.forename: Adeodata
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kekitiinwa
authors.forename: Joseph K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Huyen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Havlir
authors.forename: Edwin D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Charlebois
mesh_terms: D051997:ADP-ribosyl Cyclase 1 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000276:immunology*; D014454:Uganda
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens; D051997:ADP-ribosyl Cyclase 1