Paradoxical Immune Responses in Non-HIV Cryptococcal Meningitis.

ABSTRACT: The fungus Cryptococcus is a major cause of meningoencephalitis in HIV-infected as well as HIV-uninfected individuals with mortalities in developed countries of 20% and 30%, respectively. In HIV-related disease, defects in T-cell immunity are paramount, whereas there is little understanding of mechanisms of susceptibility in non-HIV related disease, especially that occurring in previously healthy adults. The present description is the first detailed immunological study of non-HIV-infected patients including those with severe central nervous system (s-CNS) disease to 1) identify mechanisms of susceptibility as well as 2) understand mechanisms underlying severe disease. Despite the expectation that, as in HIV, T-cell immunity would be deficient in such patients, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) imm

SUBMITTER: Panackal AA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4447450 | biostudies-literature | 2015 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature