title: Predictors of delayed-type hypersensitivity to Candida albicans and anti-Epstein-Barr virus antibody among children in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.
abstract: We evaluated sex, age, nutritional status, and infectious disease (ID) as predictors of two biomarkers of cell-mediated immunity (CMI), delayed-type hypersensitivity to Candida albicans (DTH-Candida), and anti-Epstein-Barr virus antibody (EBV Ab), among 200 children in Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. DTH-Candida, which decreases with compromised CMI, was positively associated with age (OR: 1.27; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.57) and triceps skinfold (TSF; OR: 1.16; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.26), and inversely associated with height-for-age Z score (HAZ; OR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.68, 1.08) and diagnosed ID (OR: 0.48; 95% CI: 0.22, 1.08). There was significant interaction between TSF and ID: DTH-Candida exhibited a strong inverse association with ID among children with low TSF (OR: 0.16; 95% CI: 0.05, 0.50) and a strong positive association with TSF among children with ID (OR: 2.64; 95% CI: 1.29, 5.42). EBV Ab, which increases with compromised CMI, was inversely associated with male sex (β: -0.47; 95% CI: -0.70, -0.24) and TSF (β: -0.04; 95% CI: -0.08, 0.00), and positively associated with HAZ (β: 0.06; 95% CI: -0.03, 0.15). Among males, EBV Ab was positively associated with anemia. Among normal HAZ children, EBV Ab was inversely associated with TSF. There was no association between DTH-Candida and EBV Ab. While DTH-Candida provides a direct measure of CMI, our results suggest that interpretation of EBV-Ab among Kilimanjaro children was complicated by its indirect relationship with CMI. Among our sample, CMI increased with age and adequate nutrition and was compromised during acute ID. The suggestive CMI-compromising effect of increasing height-for-age may bear further exploration.
authors: Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA. kwander@u.washington.edu
authors: Katherine
authors: K
authors: Wander
authors: Bettina
authors: B
authors: Shell-Duncan
authors: Eleanor
authors: E
authors: Brindle
authors: Kathleen
authors: K
authors: O'Connor
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000276:immunology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D059788:Dried Blood Spot Testing; D005260:Female; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D006968:Hypersensitivity, Delayed / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition; D012885:Skinfold Thickness; D013636:Tanzania / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D015415:Biomarkers