Lymphocyte subsets in human immunodeficiency virus-unexposed Brazilian individuals from birth to adulthood

Ethnic origin, genetics, gender and environmental factors have been shown to influence some immunologic indices, so that development of reference values for populations of different backgrounds may be necessary. We have determined the distribution of lymphocyte subsets in healthy Brazilian individuals from birth to adulthood. Lymphocyte subsets were determined using four-colour cytometry in a cross-sectional study of 463 human immunodeficiency virus-unexposed children and adults from birth through 49 years of age. Lymphocyte subsets varied according to age, as previously observed in other studies. However, total CD4+ T cell numbers were lower than what was described in the Pediatric AIDS Clinical Trials Group P1009 (PACTG P1009), which assessed an American population of predominantly African and Hispanic backgrounds until the 12-18 year age range, when values were comparable. Naïve percentages and absolute values of CD8+ T cells, as assessed by CD45RA expression, were also lower than the PACTG P1009 data for all analysed age ranges. CD38 expression on both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was lower than the PACTG P1009 values, with a widening gap between the two studies at older age ranges. Different patterns of cell differentiation seem to occur in different settings and may have characteristic expression within each population.

Mãe adolescente vivenciando o cuidado do filho: um modelo teórico / Madre adolescente y la experiencia de cuidar del hijo: un modelo teórico / Adolescent mother experiencing child care: a theoretic model

Este estudo objetivou compreender o significado que tem, para a mãe adolescente, vivenciar o cuidado de seu filho. Participaram do mesmo, oito mães adolescentes entre 15 e 19 anos de idade. As estratégias utilizadas para a coleta de dados foram: a observação participante e a entrevista semi-estruturada. O Interacionismo Simbólico foi usado como referencial teórico e a Teoria Fundamentada nos Dados como referencial metodológico. A análise comparativa dos dados permitiu construir o modelo teórico Superando dificuldades impulsionada pela força do amor revelando que a experiência de cuidar do filho para a mãe adolescente é impulsionada pela vivência de sentimentos que fazem com que desenvolva estratégias de ação e interação, buscando recursos para cuidar de seu filho da melhor maneira possível.

The study aimed to comprehend the meaning for the adolescent mother of experiencing care with her child and the construction of a theoretic model that is representative of this experience. The strategies employed were participant observations and a semi-structured interview. Eight adolescent mothers who had become mothers between 15 and 19 years old took part in the study. The Symbolic Interactionism was adopted as a theoretic referential and the Data-Founded Theory as a methodological reference. The comparative analysis of data revealed that for the adolescent mother the experience of taking care of her child is driven by experiencing positive feelings, which provide the development of action and interaction strategies, in the sense of searching for resources to take care of her child the best way as possible.

Este estudio tiene por objeto comprender el significado que tiene para la madre adolescente vivenciar el cuidado de su hijo. Participaron del mismo, ocho madres adolescentes entre 15 y 19 años de edad. Las estrategias utilizadas para la recolección de datos fueron: la observación participante y la entrevista semi-estructurada. El Interacionismo Simbólico fue usado como referencial teórico y la Teoría fue Fundamentada en los Datos como referencial metodológica. El análisis comparativo de los datos permitió construir el modelo teórico Superando dificultades impulsada por la fuerza del amor revelando que, para la madre adolescente la experiencia de cuidar del hijo es impulsada por la vivencia de sentimientos que hacen con que desarrolle estrategias de acción e interacción buscando recursos para cuidar de su hijo de la mejor manera posible.