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Immunological studies in tropical spastic paraparesis
Author(s) -
Jacobson Steven,
Gupta Ajay,
Mattson David,
Mingioli Elizabeth,
McFarlin Dale E.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
annals of neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.764
H-Index - 296
eISSN - 1531-8249
pISSN - 0364-5134
DOI - 10.1002/ana.410270209
Subject(s) - tropical spastic paraparesis , immunology , cytotoxic t cell , immune system , multiple sclerosis , virus , measles virus , lymphoproliferative response , virology , subacute sclerosing panencephalitis , biology , cellular immunity , antibody , t cell , retrovirus , medicine , measles , myelopathy , vaccination , peripheral blood mononuclear cell , spinal cord , biochemistry , in vitro , neuroscience
Tropical spastic paraparesis (TSP) and other chronic‐progressive myelopathies have been clearly associated with increased serum and cerebrospinal fluid antibody titers to human T‐lymphotropic virus type I (HTLV‐I). However, little is known about the cellular immune function in TSP. In the present study, activated T lymphocytes were found in the peripheral blood of patients with TSP. Specifically, there were increased numbers of large CD3+ cells that also expressed HLA‐DR and interleukin‐2–receptor molecules. A significantly elevated spontaneous lymphoproliferative response was demonstrated in all patients tested. Generation of measles virus–specific cytotoxic T‐cell response was reduced in 4 of 4 patients. This was similar to previous findings in patients with multiple sclerosis. However, unlike multiple sclerosis, reduced generation of cytotoxic T‐cell response to influenza and mumps viruses was observed in 2 of 4 patients. These observations confirm further the strong association between TSP and an HTLV‐I–like virus and suggest that the observed abnormalities of the cellular immune response in TSP are related to infection of lymphocytes by the retrovirus.