ABSTRACT
Objectives: To investigate the effects of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs on hematological parameters and thymic function in HIVuninfected newborns of HIV-infected mothers. Study design: Cross sectional study. Setting: Chiang-Mai University Hospital, Chiang-Mai, Thailand. Participants/Patients: 49 HIV-uninfected and 26 HIV-infected pregnancies. Methods: Cord blood samples of newborns from HIVuninfected and HIV-infected mothers were collected. Hematological parameters were measured using automatic blood cell count. T-cell receptor excision circles (TRECs) levels in cord blood mononuclear cells (CBMCs), CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells were quantified using real-time PCR. Main Outcome Measures: Hemotological parameters and thymic function. Results: Newborn of HIV-infected mother tended to have lower mean levels of hemoglobin than those of HIV-uninfected mother (137 ± 22 vs 146 ± 17 g/L, P = 0.05). Furthermore, mean of red blood cell (RBC) counts and hematocrit and median of TRECs in CD4+ T-cells in the newborns of the former were significantly lower than those of the latter [3.6 ± 0.7 vs 4.8 ± 0.6 x 1012 cells/L, P <0.001; 0.40 ± 0.07 vs 0.46 ± 0.05 L/L, P <0.001 and 0.53 (IQR: 0.03-5.76) vs 13.20 (IQR: 2.77-27.51) x 10-3 pg/μL, P = 0.02, respectively]. Conclusion: ARV drugs altered hematological parameters and thymic function (TRECs CD4+ T-cells) in HIV-uninfected newborns of HIV-infected mothers.
ABSTRACT
In this study, we introduce an application of flow cytometry for the concurrent detection of phagocytotic cells and surface molecules involved in the phagocytic process. E. coli expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) were applied as the phagocytosable particles. Blood samples were incubated with E. coli expressing GFP, followed by indirect immunofluorescence using four candidate monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). Granulocytes that had phagocytosed E. coli exhibited high levels of GFP intensity, in contrast to the non-phagocytosed cells. By comparing the level of expression of molecules expressed on phagocytosed granulocytes with that of non-phagocytosed cells by flow cytometry, it enabled the determination of the expression and alteration of the cell surface molecules upon phogocytosis. Of the four mAbs used in this study, upon phagocytosis, molecules recognized by mAbs WK13, COSA5A and COSA33NL were up-regulated. However, CD15 recognized by mAb VIMD5 was down-regulated. The proposed method will benefit the study of phagocytic mechanisms in the future.