APOPTOTIC CELL-DEATH, DETECTED EX-VIVO IN PERIPHERAL-BLOOD LYMPHOCYTES OF HIV-1-INFECTED PERSONS

IN HIV-1 infection the ongoing depletion of CD4+ T-lymphocytes is beli eved, to a large extent, to be due to apoptosis. Until now quantitativ e information about in vivo apoptosis of lymphocytes in HIV-patients i s scarce because of the very nature of the apoptotic process. Successf ul detection of apoptosis ex vivo requires the recognition of the init ial phase of this process, because at a later stage the cells may not remain any longer in the circulation. We measured quantitatively the a mount of early apoptotic peripheral blood lymphocytes directly ex vivo in HIV-1 infected patients using a recently described flow cytometric assay. With this method we observed in an unselected heterogenous gro up of twelve HIV-infected individuals a median percentage of apoptotic lymphocytes to be significantly higher than in. ten healthy controls. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report of ex vivo obse rved increased apoptosis of peripheral blood Lymphocytes in HIV-infect ed persons.