Anti-HIV antibodies and other serological and immunological parameters among normal Haitians in Montreal.

A matched-pair, cross-sectional study of lymphocyte and serological parameters associated with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in 189 randomly chosen, ostensibly healthy adult Haitian immigrants residing in Montreal matched for sex, age (within 5 years), and neighborhood of residence to 189 non-Haitian (Caucasian) controls was done in 1983-1984. Three years later (1986-1987), 41 of the Haitian study subjects and 83 of the non-Haitian controls participated in a follow-up study centered on lymphocyte parameters. A significantly greater number of Haitians than controls had produced antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii. In addition, a greater percentage of the Haitians than the controls were also producing antibodies to two other opportunistic pathogens frequently encountered in AIDS, cytomegalovirus and hepatitis B virus, implying that the Haitians in general had had greater exposure to a variety of infectious agents than had the controls. A few study participants were producing antibodies against two viruses that are related to the human immunodeficiency virus-type 1 (HIV-1), the human T-cell lymphotropic viruses I and II (HTLV-I and -II). Two Haitians and one control were producing antibodies against HTLV-I. One study subject and four controls were HTLV-II seropositive. The most interesting and surprising finding was that four (2.1%) of the Haitian study subjects but none of the controls were seropositive for HIV-1. These individuals, two of whom were women and two men, were asymptomatic. Although their individual lymphocyte parameter values fell in the normal range, as a group they had statistically significantly lower average values for their lymphocyte parameters than did the HIV-seronegative Haitian study objects.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Host cell resistance to mouse hepatitis virus type 3 is expressed in vitro in macrophages and lymphocytes.

Phenotypic expression of in vivo sensitivity to mouse hepatitis virus type 3 (MHV3) was studied in vitro in macrophages and lymphocytes. MHV3 infections were induced in peritoneal exudate (PE), nonadherent spleen (NAS) and thymus (THY) cells from resistant A/J, susceptible C57BL/6 or semisusceptible (C57BL/6xA/J)F1 mice. Differences in cytopathic effect, cell viability and virus titers were found only at 48 hrs postinfection (p.i.). "Carrier state" infections were performed at 48 hrs p.i. by transfer of supernatants of infected cells to newly collected cells originating from the same strain of mice. A passage-dependent restriction of viral replication was detected in vitro and was expressed in PE, NAS and THY cells as a recessive phenotype. No defective-interfering viral particles were involved in the restriction of viral replication. Results obtained with crossed infections and determination of the number of productively infected cells demonstrated that restriction of viral replication in macrophages and lymphoid cells from resistant A/J mice is controlled by a genetically-determined intrinsic cellular mechanism acting principally on the level of production of infectious viral particles by the infected cell.

Induction of natural killer cells and interferon during mouse hepatitis virus infection of resistant and susceptible inbred mouse strains.

Following infection by mouse hepatitis virus (JHM strain), an induction of natural killer (NK) cell activity was observed in C3H mice, which are considered to be sensitive to JHM virus infection. In contrast, mice of the resistant SJL strain did not show any increase of NK cell activity after JHM virus infection. However, infection of both SJL and C3H mice with mouse hepatitis virus type 3 (MHV3) resulted in an increase of NK level, comparable to that observed with the JHM virus infection in the C3H strain. No significant differences were observed in the NK cell activity of the peritoneal exudate or spleen cells of infected mice. Low levels of interferon were detected in serum or peritoneal exudate of C3H mice infected with JHM virus 18 or 24 hours before, but no detectable early interferon production was found. Also no interferon could be detected in the resistant SJL mice. After JHM virus infection, the number of peritoneal exudate cells (PEC) was increased significantly in C3H mice but not in SJL mice. Macrophages obtained from the C3H mice supported virus replication, whereas SJL macrophages did not. Our data suggest that NK cells do not play a role in the resistance of SJL mice against JHM virus infection but may participate in the defence mechanisms against this virus in C3H mice.

Precocious thymic involution manifest by epithelial injury in the acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

Thymuses from six heterosexual Haitian patients with the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) were studied by light microscopy and the findings were compared with those from three control groups. The control groups included 1) five age-matched Haitian hospital patients; 2) ten age- and sex-matched Montreal patients who had died suddenly or had had brief illnesses; and 3) 20 middle-elderly Montreal patients who had experienced chronic, wasting illnesses or prolonged hospitalization. Thymuses from patients with AIDS demonstrated pronounced involution, effacement of the cortex and medulla, marked thymocyte depletion, variable degrees of plasma cell infiltration and fibrosis, and, above all, absence of Hassall's corpuscles. Thymuses from Haitian and Montreal control subjects who had died suddenly or had brief illnesses demonstrated minimal involution and abundant Hassall's corpuscles. Although thymuses from 12 of the chronically ill control subjects demonstrated marked involution, architectural effacement, and absence of Hassall's corpuscles, partial architectural preservation and variable numbers of Hassall's corpuscles were observed in eight of these subjects. Thus, the extent of thymic involution observed in patients with AIDS antedates that incurred with aging and supersedes that induced by sustained stress and inanition. The loss of Hassall's corpuscles in patients with AIDS suggests that the thymic epithelium either incurs a form of injury or undergoes precocious involution during the illness. Whether this lesion is central to the pathogenesis of AIDS or merely a reflection of intense, sustained stress coupled with accelerated physiologic involution is unknown. It is possible that the disappearance of Hassall's corpuscles may indicate important, although as yet cryptic events within the thymic microenvironment in this syndrome.

Acquired immune deficiency syndrome: specific aspects of the disease in Haiti.

PIP: This paper presents clinical data on 41 patients (29 male and 12 female) from Haiti who presented with acquired immunedeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Their mean age was 32 years (range 17-61 years). 4 of thes cases were homosexual or bisexual; none was an illicit drug user or a hemophiliac. In addition, 3 of the female patients had sexual contact with a male partner with AIDS. 4 patients had received blood transfusions before their illness. The most prominent clinical symptom in this series was chronic diarrhea of 2-33 months' duration, which occurrred in 39 patients (95%). Also reporte were marked weight loss (95%), fatigue (95%), prolonger fever (90%), and nodular or maculopapular skin lesions (54%). Opportunistic infections in this series included oroesophageal candidiasis (88%) and intestinal cryptosporidiosis (31%). Tuberculosis developed in 22% of patients. Immunologic evaluation revealed profoundly depressed T-helper cells and an inverted T-helper/T-suppressor cell ratio. Biologic markers included elevated alpha-1 thymosin and beta-2 microglobulin levels, elevated immune complexes, and the presence of acid-labile interferon. Of interest were differences in the clinical expression of AIDS between this series and cases in the US. The Haitian data suggest a higher incidencs of female cases,a predominance of gastrointestinal symptoms rather than respiratory symptoms and lymphadenopathy, a frequent association with tuberculosis, and a relatively low incidence of Kaposi's sarcoma or P. carinii pneumonia compared to the situation in the US. As in the US, where most AIDS cases are concentrated in New York and California, most AIDS cases in Haiti are found in residents of Port-au-Prince and Carrefour, which are centers for male and female prostitution.^ieng

Immunodepression of lymphocyte response in mouse hepatitis virus 3 infection.

Replication of MHV3 in macrophage-depleted T cells and effects of MHV3 infection on mouse lymphocytes were studied in mixed lymphocyte reaction and in mitogen-stimulated cells. In vitro infection of lymphocytes with infectious MHV3 resulted in replication of the virus and marked inhibition of the proliferative response of cells. In mixed lymphocyte cultures, a strong inhibition was obtained when either X-irradiated stimulator cells or responder cells were preinfected with infectious virus. Inactive virus was able, however, to induce a slight inhibition of MLC reaction following treatment of responder cells, but no inhibition was seen when stimulator cells were treated. Since the infection did not visibly affect lymphocyte viability, MHV3 appeared to replicate in lymphocytes without displaying any cytopathic effects comparable to those observed in infected macrophages.

Persistent in vitro infection with mouse hepatitis virus 3.

Mouse hepatitis virus 3 (MHV3) infection in mice displays various types of sensitivity according to mouse strains: resistance, full susceptibility and semisusceptibility . MHV3 infections were carried out in primary cultures of embryonic fibroblasts originating from various mouse strains and in mouse lymphoid cell lines. Persistent infection was induced in 2 out of 3 primary embryonic fibroblast cultures. A high production of virus was obtained, as tested by viral titers and cell membrane antigen detection. Cytopathic effects characterized by cell lysis were related to in vivo phenotypes. Persistent MHV3 infection established in vitro in YAC mouse lymphoid cell line was characterized by virus production, occurrence of cellular viral antigens and cell lysis. Cell cloning and antibody treatment experiments indicated that the type of viral transmission was horizontal and not vertical. These data indicate that persistent infection induced by MHV3 in lymphoid cell lines is characterized by a viral "carrier state" where production of infectious viral particles remains in equilibrium with cell permissiveness. Biological and biochemical properties of MHV3 variants derived from persistently infected YAC lymphoid cells were characterized. Similar heterogeneous thermosensitive properties were observed when YAC-derived cloned substrains (YAC-MHV3) were compared to parental-derived cloned viruses, indicating that no selection of temperature-sensitive mutants was induced in persistently infected YAC cells. The capacity, however, of YAC-MHV3 to induce a lethal acute disease when injected into susceptible mice was lost very rapidly and seemed to be regulated by host factors.

[Centrifugal annular erythema of Colcott-Fox type (erythema gyratum perstans)]. / Erythéme annulaire centrifuge type colcott-fox (erythema gyratum perstans)

The case of a child with Colcott-Fox type of centrifugal annular chronic erythema is reported. It is a sporadic, non-familial form, associated with a bullous eruption, and an atrophic conjonctivitis with trichiasis. A review is made of 11 previously published cases, allowing a synthesis of their essential features. The action played by the slow reactive substances (S. R. S. A.) in the extension of the erythematous margin is discussed. The clinical diagnosis of centrifugal annular erythema is exposed.