  
Presence of anti-CMV antibodies linked to reduced CMV disease in AIDS patients
Last Updated: 2001-04-24 17:58:49 EDT (Reuters Health)
WESTPORT, CT (Reuters Health) - Patients with AIDS who experience a decrease in certain cytomegalovirus (CMV) antibody levels may be more likely to develop end-organ CMV disease, according to a report published in the May issue of the Journal of Medical Virology.
Dr. David Navarro from the University of Valencia in Spain and colleagues performed anti-CMV antibody assays on sera from 27 AIDS patients. The antibodies measured included neutralizing and glycoprotein B (gB)-specific antibodies.
Six patients developed end-organ CMV disease and 21 did not, the authors state. Patients who developed CMV disease had a more than fourfold reduction in antibody levels and concurrent antigenemia. Conversely, AIDS patients without CMV disease maintained stable antibody levels and did not become antigenemic.
The serum level and kinetics of the antibodies did not depend on the patient's response to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the researchers note. CD4+ cell count and HIV viral load also had no bearing on the antibody levels.
"Given the small number of patients monitored, confirmation of these results awaits further studies evaluating larger series of patients," the investigators note. "The data presented raise the question of whether AIDS patients displaying high systemic human CMV load could benefit from the exogenous administration of potent human CMV neutralizing antibodies," they add.
J Med Virol 2001;64:35-41.
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