The clinical significance of invariant natural killer T cells in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection / 中华传染病杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective@#To explore the changes of the peripheral invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. @*Methods@#A total of 101 patients with HIV infection including 52 asymptomatic patients and 49 acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients were enrolled in the study from June 2016 to July 2017. Flow cytometry was used to detect iNKT cells, CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells, and the relationship among them and HIV RNA was studied. At same time, 12 healthy persons were enrolled as control group. T test or variance analysis, rank sum test, Chi-square test and Fisher exact test were used for statistical analysis. @*Results@#In HIV infected asymptomatic patients, AIDS patients and healthy controls, iNKT cells were 0.135% (0.066%, 0.228%), 0.058% (0.034%, 0.100%) and 0.385% (0.205%, 0.600%), respectively, and the difference was statistical significant (Z=40.113, P<0.01). CD4+ T cell counts in the three groups were (340.82±119.26) cells/μL, (72.73±61.84) cells/μL and (555.17±229.43) cells/μL, respectively, and the difference was statistical significant (t=113.79, P<0.01); CD8+ T cell counts in the three groups were (842.29±423.68) cells/μL, (540.43±257.85) cells/μL and (875.92±516.45) cells/μL, respectively, and the difference was statistical significant (t=9.423, P<0.01). Ratios of CD4+ /CD8+ T cells in the three groups were 0.490 (0.240, 0.695), 0.120 (0.030, 0.210) and 0.600 (0.475, 0.895), respectively, and the difference was statistical significant (Z=53.603, P<0.01). iNKT cell counts in patients with or without hepatitis B virus infection, pneumocystis pneumonia, oral mold infection, treponema pallidum, latent tuberculosis or EB virus infection were not significantly different (Z=0.244, 2.325, 2.393, 0.168, 1.183 and 0.454, respectively, all P>0.05). There were correlations between iNKT cells and CD4+ T cells, CD4+ /CD8+ T cells (r=0.513 and 0.261, respectively, both P<0.05), and no relationship was found between iNKT cells and CD8+ T cells (r=0.155, P=0.126). In HIV infected asymptomatic patients and AIDS patients, iNKT cells was not associated with HIV RNA (r=-0.113 and -0.111, respectively, both P>0.05). @*Conclusions@#The level of peripheral iNKT cells in HIV infected patients decreases with the disease progression. To certain extent, iNKT cells can reflect the severity of immune damaging in HIV infected patients.