title: The impact of pregnancy on the HIV-1-specific T cell function in infected pregnant women.
abstract: Evidences indicate that pregnancy can alter the Ag-specific T-cell responses. This work aims to evaluate the impact of pregnancy on the in vitro HIV-1-specific immune response. As compared with non-pregnant patients, lower T-cell proliferation and higher IL-10 production were observed in T-cell cultures from pregnant patients following addition of either mitogens or HIV-1 antigens. In our system, the main T lymphocyte subset involved in producing IL-10 was CD4(+)FoxP3(-). Depletion of CD4(+) cells elevated TNF-α and IFN-γ production. Interestingly, the in vitro HIV-1 replication was lower in cell cultures from pregnant patients, and it was inversely related to IL-10 production. In these cultures, the neutralization of IL-10 by anti-IL-10 mAb elevated TNF-α release and HIV-1 replication. In conclusion, our results reveal that pregnancy-related events should favor the expansion of HIV-1-specific IL-10-secreting CD4(+) T-cells in HIV-1-infected women, which should, in the scenario of pregnancy, help to reduce the risk of vertical HIV-1 transmission.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, Federal University of State of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
authors.forename: Joana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hygino
authors.forename: Morgana M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Vieira
authors.forename: Taissa M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Kasahara
authors.forename: Luciana F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Xavier
authors.forename: Bernardo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: Landi V C
authors.initials: LV
authors.lastname: Guillermo
authors.forename: Renato G S
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Filho
authors.forename: Carmen S M
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Saramago
authors.forename: Agostinho A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Lima-Silva
authors.forename: Ariane L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Vander
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Guimarães
authors.forename: Arnaldo F B
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: Cleonice A M
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Bento
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D015488:HIV Antigens / Q000008:administration & dosage; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical / Q000517:prevention & control; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D014779:Virus Replication / Q000276:immunology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D015488:HIV Antigens; C508609:IL10 protein, human; D016753:Interleukin-10