Skip to main content
PMC home page
Clinical and Experimental Immunology logoLink to Clinical and Experimental Immunology
. 1988 Oct;74(1):7–13.

Blastogenic responses to Pneumocystis carinii among patients with human immunodeficiency (HIV) infection.

D N Hagler 1, G S Deepe 1, C L Pogue 1, P D Walzer 1
PMCID: PMC1541708  PMID: 2975540

Abstract

Proliferative responses by human peripheral blood mononuclear cells and rat spleen cells were measured to Pneumocystis carinii in a blastogenic assay using organisms obtained from rat lungs and propagated in tissue culture as the antigen. Responses occurred only in subjects with known prior exposure to P. carinii and the magnitude of the response varied with the number of organisms present in the antigen preparation and days in culture. Healthy human adults showed higher proliferative responses to P. carinii than did patients with Class II (asymptomatic) or Class III (lymphadenopathy) human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. No responses to the preparation were found among Class IV HIV patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, including those with prior episodes of P. carinii pneumonia or those receiving azidothymidine. Overall, the blastogenic responses obtained with P. carinii were similar to those obtained with tetanus toxoid and phytohemagglutinin, and correlated well with the number of circulating CD4 cells. The data suggest that the blastogenic assay using tissue culture-derived rat P. carinii is specific for the organism and should be helpful in studying the cellular immune responses in pneumocystosis among different human patient populations.

Full text

PDF
8

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Bartlett M. S., Verbanac P. A., Smith J. W. Cultivation of Pneumocystis carinii with WI-38 cells. J Clin Microbiol. 1979 Dec;10(6):796–799. doi: 10.1128/jcm.10.6.796-799.1979. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Cushion M. T., Ruffolo J. J., Linke M. J., Walzer P. D. Pneumocystis carinii: growth variables and estimates in the A549 and WI-38 VA13 human cell lines. Exp Parasitol. 1985 Aug;60(1):43–54. doi: 10.1016/s0014-4894(85)80021-7. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Cushion M. T., Walzer P. D. Growth and serial passage of Pneumocystis carinii in the A549 cell line. Infect Immun. 1984 May;44(2):245–251. doi: 10.1128/iai.44.2.245-251.1984. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Fauci A. S. AIDS: immunopathogenic mechanisms and research strategies. Clin Res. 1987 Oct;35(6):503–510. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Fischl M. A., Richman D. D., Grieco M. H., Gottlieb M. S., Volberding P. A., Laskin O. L., Leedom J. M., Groopman J. E., Mildvan D., Schooley R. T. The efficacy of azidothymidine (AZT) in the treatment of patients with AIDS and AIDS-related complex. A double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. N Engl J Med. 1987 Jul 23;317(4):185–191. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198707233170401. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Frenkel J. K., Good J. T., Shultz J. A. Latent Pneumocystis infection of rats, relapse, and chemotherapy. Lab Invest. 1966 Oct;15(10):1559–1577. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Gigliotti F., Stokes D. C., Cheatham A. B., Davis D. S., Hughes W. T. Development of murine monoclonal antibodies to Pneumocystis carinii. J Infect Dis. 1986 Aug;154(2):315–322. doi: 10.1093/infdis/154.2.315. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Graves D. C., McNabb S. J., Worley M. A., Downs T. D., Ivey M. H. Analyses of rat Pneumocystis carinii antigens recognized by human and rat antibodies by using western immunoblotting. Infect Immun. 1986 Oct;54(1):96–103. doi: 10.1128/iai.54.1.96-103.1986. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Herrod H. G., Valenski W. R., Woods D. R., Pifer L. L. The in vitro response of human lymphocytes to Pneumocystis carinii antigen. J Immunol. 1981 Jan;126(1):59–61. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Kim C. K., Foy J. M., Cushion M. T., Stanforth D., Linke M. J., Hendrix H. L., Walzer P. D. Comparison of histologic and quantitative techniques in evaluation of therapy for experimental Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 1987 Feb;31(2):197–201. doi: 10.1128/aac.31.2.197. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Lane H. C., Depper J. M., Greene W. C., Whalen G., Waldmann T. A., Fauci A. S. Qualitative analysis of immune function in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Evidence for a selective defect in soluble antigen recognition. N Engl J Med. 1985 Jul 11;313(2):79–84. doi: 10.1056/NEJM198507113130204. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Milder J. E., Walzer P. D., Coonrod J. D., Rutledge M. E. Comparison of histological and immunological techniques for detection of Pneumocystis carinii in rat bronchial lavage fluid. J Clin Microbiol. 1980 Apr;11(4):409–417. doi: 10.1128/jcm.11.4.409-417.1980. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Mills J. Pneumocystis carinii and Toxoplasma gondii infections in patients with AIDS. Rev Infect Dis. 1986 Nov-Dec;8(6):1001–1011. doi: 10.1093/clinids/8.6.1001. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Pifer L. L., Hughes W. T., Murphy M. J., Jr Propagation of Pneumocystis carinii in vitro. Pediatr Res. 1977 Apr;11(4):305–316. doi: 10.1203/00006450-197704000-00010. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Pifer L. L., Hughes W. T., Stagno S., Woods D. Pneumocystis carinii infection: evidence for high prevalence in normal and immunosuppressed children. Pediatrics. 1978 Jan;61(1):35–41. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Seligmann M., Pinching A. J., Rosen F. S., Fahey J. L., Khaitov R. M., Klatzmann D., Koenig S., Luo N., Ngu J., Riethmüller G. Immunology of human immunodeficiency virus infection and the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. An update. Ann Intern Med. 1987 Aug;107(2):234–242. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-107-2-234. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Walzer P. D., LaBine M., Redington T. J., Cushion M. T. Lymphocyte changes during chronic administration of and withdrawal from corticosteroids: relation to Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. J Immunol. 1984 Nov;133(5):2502–2508. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Walzer P. D., LaBine M., Redington T. J., Cushion M. T. Predisposing factors in Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia: effects of tetracycline, protein malnutrition, and corticosteroids on hosts. Infect Immun. 1984 Dec;46(3):747–753. doi: 10.1128/iai.46.3.747-753.1984. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Walzer P. D., Linke M. J. A comparison of the antigenic characteristics of rat and human Pneumocystis carinii by immunoblotting. J Immunol. 1987 Apr 1;138(7):2257–2265. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Walzer P. D., Perl D. P., Krogstad D. J., Rawson P. G., Schultz M. G. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia in the United States. Epidemiologic, diagnostic, and clinical features. Ann Intern Med. 1974 Jan;80(1):83–93. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-80-1-83. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Walzer P. D., Rutledge M. E. Comparison of rat, mouse, and human Pneumocystis carinii by immunofluorescence. J Infect Dis. 1980 Sep;142(3):449–449. doi: 10.1093/infdis/142.3.449. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Walzer P. D., Rutledge M. E. Humoral immunity in experimental Pneumocystis carinii infection. I. Serum and bronchial lavage fluid antibody responses in rats. J Lab Clin Med. 1981 Jun;97(6):820–833. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Walzer P. D., Stanforth D., Linke M. J., Cushion M. T. Pneumocystis carinii: immunoblotting and immunofluorescent analyses of serum antibodies during experimental rat infection and recovery. Exp Parasitol. 1987 Jun;63(3):319–328. doi: 10.1016/0014-4894(87)90179-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Clinical and Experimental Immunology are provided here courtesy of British Society for Immunology

RESOURCES