The Imbalance Between Intestinal Th17 and Treg Cells Is Associated with an Incomplete Immune Reconstitution During Long-Term Antiretroviral Therapy in Patients with HIV

作者：Yuntian Guo, Xiaoyan Guo, Li-na Fan, Zerui Wang, Mengmeng Qu, Chao Zhang, Xing Fan, Jin‐Wen Song, Wenxu, Bao-Peng Yang, Ji‐Yuan Zhang, Ruonan Xu, Yan‐Mei Jiao, Yan-mei Jiao, Ping Ma, Ping Ma, Yaokai Chen, Yaokai Chen, Fu‐Sheng Wang · 发表于：Viral Immunology · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1089/vim.2023.0017 · 被引用次数：9 · 研究领域：HIV Research and Treatment、Immune Cell Function and Interaction、HIV-related health complications and treatments

Studies assessing the gut mucosal immune balance in HIV-infected patients using intestinal samples are scarce. In this study, we used intestinal mucosal specimens from the ileocecal region of seven immunological nonresponders (INRs), nine immunological responders (IRs), and six HIV-negative controls. We investigated T helper 17 (Th17) and T regulatory (Treg) cell counts and their ratio, zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), intestinal fatty acid-binding protein (I-FABP), tumor necrosis factor-α, CD4 + T cell counts, HIV DNA, and cell-associated HIV RNA. The results showed that INRs had lower Th17 and higher Treg cell counts than IR, resulting in a significant difference in the Th17/Treg ratio between IRs and INRs. In addition, INRs had lower ZO-1 and higher I-FABP levels than IRs. The Th17/Treg ratio was positively associated with ZO-1 and negatively associated with I-FABP levels. There was a positive correlation between Th17/Treg ratio and CD4 + T cell counts and a negative correlation between the Th17/Treg ratio and HIV DNA in the intestine. Our study suggests that the imbalance of Th17/Treg in the intestine is a characteristic of incomplete immune reconstitution to antiretroviral therapy and is associated with intestinal damage.