HIV infection is associated with elevated biomarkers of immune activation in Ugandan adults with pneumonia

Abstract

Introduction Pneumonia is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in persons living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. How immune activation differs among HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected adults with pneumonia is unknown. Methods The Inflammation, Aging, Microbes, and Obstructive Lung Disease (I AM OLD) Cohort is a prospective cohort of adults with pneumonia in Uganda. In this cross-sectional analysis, plasma was collected at pneumonia presentation to measure the following 12 biomarkers: interleukin 6 (IL-6), soluble tumor necrosis factor receptors 1 and 2 (sTNFR-1 and sTNFR-2), high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), fibrinogen, D-dimer, soluble CD27 (sCD27), interferon gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP-10), soluble CD14 (sCD14), soluble CD163 (sCD163), hyaluronan, and intestinal fatty acid binding protein. We asked whether biomarker levels differed between HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected participants, and whether higher levels of these biomarkers were associated with mortality. Results One hundred seventy-three participants were enrolled. Fifty-three percent were HIV-infected. Eight plasma biomarkers—sTNFR-1, sTNFR-2, hsCRP, D-dimer, sCD27, IP-10, sCD14, and hyaluronan—were higher among participants with HIV infection, after adjustment for pneumonia severity. Higher levels of 8 biomarkers—IL-6, sTNFR-1, sTNFR-2, hsCRP, IP-10, sCD14, sCD163, and hyaluronan—were associated with increased 2-month mortality. Conclusions As in other clinical contexts, HIV infection is associated with a greater degree of immune activation among Ugandan adults with pneumonia. Some of these are also associated with short-term mortality. Further study is needed to explore whether these biomarkers might predict poor long-term outcomes—such as the development of obstructive lung disease—in patients with HIV who have recovered from pneumonia.

High Mycobacterium tuberculosis Bacillary Loads Detected by Tuberculosis Molecular Bacterial Load Assay in Patient Stool: a Potential Alternative for Nonsputum Diagnosis and Treatment Response Monitoring of Tuberculosis

“…We conducted a cross-sectional, laboratory-based study utilizing banked stool samples collected between 2018 and 2019. The study was nested in a cohort of persons with pneumonia ( 47 – 49 ) at Naguru Referral Hospital, Kampala, Uganda.…”

Reproducibility of the Ribosomal RNA Synthesis Ratio in Sputum and Association with Markers of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Burden

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Increased Mitochondrial Mass Related To Heightened Pyroptosis of CD4+T Cells In HIV-1 Infection

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