Objective: To investigate the functional states of peripheral blood monocytes/macrophages and their relation with the disease progression in people living with HIV/AIDS (PWHA).
Methods: Peripheral blood samples were collected from 57 PWHA who didn't receive antivirus treatment before and 32 healthy controls in Jilin, Liaoning, and Henan provinces. Flow cytometry was used to detect the expression of the early activation molecule CD69 in the CD14(+) cells. The plasma HIV RNA level was determined using real-time PCR.
Results: The CD69 expression rate in the CD14(+) T cells of the PWHA group was 27% +/- 4%, significantly higher than that of the controls (P < 0.01). The CD69 expression rate of the AIDS group was 39% +/- 3%, significantly higher than those of the HIV group and long-term nonprogressors (LTNP) group (26% +/- 3% and 20% +/- 4% respectively, both P < 0.05), that of the HIV groups being significantly higher than that of the LTNP group too (P < 0.05). The side scatter value of the CD14(+) T cells of the PWHA group was 76 +/- 16, significantly higher than that of the control group (50 +/- 12, P < 0.05). The monocyte/macrophage CD69 expression rate was significantly negatively correlated with the absolute value of CD4(+) T cells (r = -0.872, P < 0.01), and not correlated with the value of CD8(+) T cells (P > 0.05). The monocyte/macrophage CD69 expression rate was significantly positively correlated with the HIV-1 RNA viral load (r = 0.697, P < 0.01).
Conclusion: The activation and the phagocytosis function of the monocytes/macrophages of the PWHA in China are higher than those of the healthy control. They are positively correlated with the disease progression.