Cytokines and HIV infection

Infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) results in the production of cytokines by cells that comprise the immune system. Such cytokines regulate both immune function and viral replication, and thereby complicate their contribution to the progression to AIDS. Certain cytokines that regulate immune function exert opposing effects, such that some promote mainly cellular immune function, whereas others enhance antibody production. It has been suggested that an imbalance in cytokine production is responsible in part for the immune dysregulation characteristic of progression to AIDS. Different cytokines can also have different effects on HIV expression and replication. Cytokine-based therapy has been suggested for preventing or delaying progression to AIDS. If such therapy is to be successful, it will be necessary to identify the correlate of immune protection, as well as to determine which cytokines enhance or suppress protective immunity, and the effects of these cytokines on viral replication.     

NKT cells and HIV infection

Natural killer T (NKT) cells are a subset of lymphocytes that express a semi-invariant T cell receptor (TCR) that recognizes glycolipids presented by the non-polymorphic MHC class I-like molecule CD1d. NKT cells regulate a wide variety of immune functions against autoantigens and pathogens. Recently, it was shown that NKT cells are targeted by HIV-1 and selectively lost in HIV-infected individuals. This review will focus on the mechanisms, consequences and therapeutic implications of these findings.     

Occupational HIV infection. Medical workers and HIV prevention

The analysis of the possibility of suffering injuries at a work place, their causes, the knowledge of HIV infection, attitude towards the infected person is presented. The work was carried out, starting from 1990. Every 2 years the anonymous questioning of members of the medical personnel of different specialties at medical institutions of different profile and level was carried out. Five questionings on injuries suffered during work, the knowledge of HIV infection and the attitude of members of the medical profession towards HIV-positive persons. In most cases injuries are inflicted by injection needles (79%), during operations (12%), by splinters of broken medical glassware and appliances (3%) and in other cases (6%). In 91% of cases injuries caused by needles occur in the process of placing caps on the needles. In the course of 9 years changes in the level of knowledge and the attitude towards HIV-infected persons occurred. Changes in the outlook and the knowledge of AIDS were due to the positive influence of intensive education directly at work places.