RESUMO
This study included 10 patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis, 10 patients with inactive disease and 20 healthy individuals as controls. T cell proliferation assay with PPD antigen showed higher stimulation index [SI] in the inactive compared with the active tuberculous patients [9.53 +/- 2.75 vs. 4.61 +/- 1.67, respectively] reflecting the good status of the immune system towards mycobacterial antigen. Gamma interferon [IFN] level [pg/ml] was significantly higher in the inactive than the active tuberculous patients and controls [210.24 +/- 58.57, 79.20 +/- 21.79 and 32.89 +/- 33.58, respectively]. Similar results were shown for IL-2, where its level [pg/ml] in the inactive patients was significantly higher than the active tuberculous patients [234.92 +/- 51.47 vs. 99.26 +/- 19.20, respectively]. On the other hand, IL-10 was significantly higher in the active than the inactive patients [435.23 +/- 78.22 vs. 235.98 +/- 50.74 pg/ml, respectively] indicating a dominant Th2 type response during the course of TB infection. Tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF- alpha] was significantly higher in the active than the inactive tuberculous patients [402.46 +/- 57.44 vs. 188.64 +/- 59.82 pg/ml, respectively]. The tuberculostatic effects of INF-alpha and TNF-alpha in the active stage of the disease were discussed