IgE against HIV proteins in clinically healthy children with HIV disease

J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1996 Nov;98(5 Pt 1):979-84. doi: 10.1016/s0091-6749(96)80015-7.

Abstract

Elevated serum Ige was detected in 26% (7 of 30) of children with HIV infection. The majority of children with elevated IgE were of one ethnic group (Puerto Rican) (4 of 7), compared with only 9% (2 of 23) in the normal to low IgE group (p = 0.02). Most of the children with elevated IgE had decreased circulating CD4+ T cells (5 of 7 or 71%); but none had opportunistic infections, and none failed to thrive. Although similar numbers of children with normal to low IgE had decreased circulating CD4+ T cells (19 of 23 or 83%), this group had opportunistic infections (6 of 23 or 26%) and failure to thrive (7 of 30 or 30%). There was no difference in incidence of allergic symptoms between groups. IgE antibody against HIV protein was detected by Western blot technique in the sera of three children with elevated serum IgE. Thus we have identified a group of children with HIV infection and elevated serum IgE of predominantly one ethnic group, who are without opportunistic infections or failure to thrive, some of whom produce HIV-specific IgE. This suggests that IgE may play a protective (perhaps late compensatory) role in HIV disease in genetically predisposed individuals.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / blood
  • AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / immunology
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Antibody Specificity
  • CD4 Lymphocyte Count
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Female
  • HIV Antibodies / blood
  • HIV Antibodies / immunology*
  • HIV Core Protein p24 / blood
  • HIV Infections / blood
  • HIV Infections / ethnology
  • HIV Infections / immunology*
  • HIV-1 / immunology*
  • Hispanic or Latino
  • Humans
  • Immunoglobulin E / blood
  • Immunoglobulin E / immunology*
  • Male
  • New York City / epidemiology
  • Puerto Rico / ethnology

Substances

  • HIV Antibodies
  • HIV Core Protein p24
  • Immunoglobulin E