Morphometric analysis of dendritic cells from anal mucosa of HIV-positive patients and the relation to intraepithelial lesions and cancer seen at a tertiary health institution in Brazil Análise morfométrica das células dendríticas da mucosa anal de pacientes HIV-positivos e relação com as lesões intraepiteliais e o câncer numa instituição de saúde terciária no Brasil

• Published in: Acta cirúrgica brasileira 2011-12, Vol.26 (6), p.521-529
• Main Authors: Adriana Gonçalves Daumas Pinheiro Guimarães, Roberto Moreira da Silva Junior, Oscar Tadeu Ferreira da Costa, Ivan Tramujas da Costa e Silva, Felicidad Santos Gimenez, José Ribamar de Araujo, Rosilene Viana de Andrade, Erico Jander da Silva Lopes, Jacqueline Pereira Pinheiro, Junia Raquel D. Ferreira, Adriana Malheiro, Luiz Carlos de Lima Ferreira
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anus Diseases; Células Dendríticas; Dendritic Cells; Doenças do Ânus; HIV; Neoplasias; Neoplasms
• ISSN: 0102-8650; 1678-2674
• DOI: 10.1590/S0102-86502011000600019

PURPOSE: To morphometrically quantify CD1a+ dentritic cells and DC-SIGN+ dendritic cells in HIV-positive patients with anal squamous intraepithelial neoplasia and to evaluate the effects of HIV infection, antiretroviral therapy and HPV infection on epithelial and subepithelial dendritic cells. METHODS: A prospective study was performed to morphometrically analyze the relative volume of the dendritic cells and the relationship between anal intraepithelial neoplasia and cancer in HIV-positive patients from the Tropical Medicine Foundation of Amazonas, Brazil. All patients were submitted to biopsies of anorectal mucosa to perform a classic histopathological and immunohistochemical analysis, employing antibodies against CD1a and DC-SIGN for the morphometric quantification of dendritic cells. RESULTS: HIV-negative patients displayed a CD1a DC density significantly higher than that of HIV-positives patients (3.75 versus 2.54) (p=0.018), and in patients with severe anal intraepithelial neoplasia had correlated between DC CD1a density with levels of CD4 + cells (p: 0.04) as well as the viral load of HIV-1 (p: 0.035). A not significant rise in the median density of CD1a+ DC was observed in the HIV positive/ HAART positive subgroup compared to the HIV positive/ HAART negative subgroup. The CD1a+ DC were also significantly increased in HIV-negative patients with anorectal condyloma (2.33 to 3.53; p=0.05), with an opposite effect in HIV-positive patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our data support an enhancement of the synergistic action caused by HIV-HPV co-infection on the anal epithelium, weakening the DC for its major role in immune surveillance. Notoriously in patients with severe anal intraepithelial neoplasia, the density of CD1a+ epithelial dendritic cells was influenced by the viral load of HIV-1. Our study describes for the first time the density of subepithelial DC-SIGN+ dendritic cells in patients with anal severe anal intraepithelial neoplasia and points to the possibility that a specific therapy for HIV induces the recovery of the density of epithelial DC.OBJETIVO: Quantificar morfometricamente as células dendríticas DC CD1a+ e DC DC-SIGN+ em pacientes HIV positivos portadores de neoplasia escamosa intraepitelial anal e avaliar os efeitos da infecção pelo HIV, da terapia antirretroviral e da infecção pelo HPV sobre as células dendríticas epiteliais e subepiteliais. MÉTODOS: Um estudo prospectivo foi realizado para analisar morfometricamente o volume relativo das célu