The Revival of an "Old" Marker: CD4/CD8 Ratio.
The effectiveness of modern antiretroviral therapies (ART) transformed HIV infection into a chronic disease characterized by a persistent condition of inflammation and immune activation. For this reason, even thought AIDS-related mortality has been reduced with an increased life expectancy, patients living with HIV infection are more likely to develop non-AIDS events despite the achievement of a complete suppression of HIV replication. Hence, the scientific community feels the need to find new biomarkers which would be suitable in clinical practice for identifying patients who require a close monitoring because of an increased risk of developing comorbidities. A renewed interest has emerged about the usefulness of CD4/CD8 ratio as a strong marker of immune activation and immune senescence. Recently, many studies have underlined that CD4/CD8 ratio might represent a good predictor of AIDS and non-AIDS events. Herein, the potential role of the CD4/CD8 ratio for the monitoring of HIV patients in different clinical settings is reviewed.
Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
Giuseppe
G
Bruno
Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
Annalisa
A
Saracino
Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
Laura
L
Monno
Clinic of Infectious Diseases, University of Bari, Bari, Italy.
Gioacchino
G
Angarano
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015415:Biomarkers; D016516:CD4-CD8 Ratio; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D015415:Biomarkers