A NEW, STRIKING MORPHOLOGICAL ALTERATION OF P-GLYCOPROTEIN EXPRESSIONIN NK CELLS FROM AIDS PATIENTS

Natural killer cells from healthy donors express P-glycoprotein on the ir surface. This molecule is rearranged during the process of cell-med iated cytotoxicity and it appears to be clustered in the cell-to-cell contact regions. By contrast, in HIV-infected subjects this rearrangem ent is hindered. These results seem to be associated with cytoskeleton network alterations of the cell-mediated killing process occurring in AIDS patients and can contribute to the comprehension of the mechanis ms of the natural killer cell deficiency found in these patients. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.