Different biological significance of sCD14 and LPS in HIV-infection: Importance of the immunovirology stage and association with HIV-disease progression markers

• Published in: The Journal of infection Vol. 65; no. 5; pp. 431 - 438
• Main Authors: Romero-Sánchez, M Concepción, González-Serna, Alejandro, Pacheco, Yolanda M, Ferrando-Martínez, Sara, Machmach, Kawthar, García-García, María, Álvarez-Ríos, Ana Isabel, Vidal, Francisco, Leal, Manuel, Ruiz-Mateos, Ezequiel
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2012; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Bacterial lipopolysaccharide; Bacterial Translocation; Biological and medical sciences; Biomarkers - blood; C-Reactive Protein - metabolism; CD4 Lymphocyte Count; Chronic immune activation; D-dimer; Disease Progression; Female; Fibrin Fibrinogen Degradation Products - metabolism; General aspects; High-sensitivity C-reactive protein; HIV Infections - blood; HIV Infections - immunology; HIV Infections - virology; HIV-progression; Human viral diseases; Humans; Immunodeficiencies; Immunodeficiencies. Immunoglobulinopathies; Immunopathology; Infectious Disease; Infectious diseases; Lipopolysaccharide Receptors - blood; Lipopolysaccharides - blood; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; RNA, Viral - blood; Soluble CD14; Statistics, Nonparametric; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the lymphoid tissue and the blood. Aids; Viral Load; High-sensitivity C-reactive protein; HIV-progression; D-dimer; Bacterial lipopolysaccharide; Soluble CD14; Bacterial translocation; Chronic immune activation; Infection; Immunopathology; Prognosis; Viral disease; Evolution; AIDS; Immune deficiency
• ISSN: 0163-4453; 1532-2742
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jinf.2012.06.008

Summary Objectives Bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and soluble CD14 (sCD14) levels have been indistinctly used to measure bacterial translocation independently of the immunovirological stage in HIV infection; however, when the association of both markers with different HIV-progression end-points has been studied, discrepant results have been reported. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between LPS and sCD14 in different HIV-infection immune stages and to determine the relationship between these biomarkers with established HIV-disease-progression-related markers, as T-cell immune activation, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and D-dimer. Methods Seventy-three chronically HIV-1-infected patients with detectable HIV-1 RNA levels were analyzed. LPS levels by use of limulus lysate assay, sCD14, intestinal fatty acid binding protein and inflammation–coagulation-associated biomarkers were assessed. Results In this study, we found that LPS and sCD14 levels were only associated when low CD4+ T-cell levels and high HIV RNA levels were present. In addition, only sCD14 levels, but not LPS, were independently associated with HIV-disease progression-related markers, supporting the clinical importance of sCD14. Conclusions These results indicate that LPS and sCD14 have a different biological significance and should not be indistinctly used without taking the HIV immunovirological stage into account.