Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes and human retrovirology : official publication of the International Retrovirology Association
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J. Acquir. Immune Defic. Syndr. Hum. Retrovirol. · Nov 1997
Enhancement of natural killer and antibody-dependent cytolytic activities of the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of HIV-infected patients by recombinant IL-15.
Natural killer (NK) cells are an important subset of lymphocytes capable of killing virus-infected target cells without prior sensitization. HIV-infected individuals show impairment of their NK cell activity. Although the mechanism responsible for this defect remains unclear, NK cytotoxicity of lymphocytes from these individuals can be partially restored by interleukin (IL)-2. ⋯ IL-15 did not exert any modulatory effect on the expression of CD16 or CD56 molecules. Our results show that IL-15 can increase the NK and ADCC activities of the PBMCs of HIV-infected individuals in vitro. In view of its higher therapeutic index as determined using murine models, IL-15 may represent a better immunotherapeutic agent than IL-2 to restore these functions in HIV-seropositive patients.