M FERMENTANS AND THE PROGRESSION OF HIV INFECTION

在过去的24个月里，发酵支原体菌株隐姓埋名 在艾滋病患者的尸检组织中检测到 呼吸道、中枢神经系统(CNS)和肾脏疾病。在 1991年美国微生物学会会员大会，增加 艾滋病患者尿液中发现发酵支原体的发病率 与年龄和性别匹配的非艾滋病患者相比。此外，M. 据报道，在艾滋病患者的血液中存在发酵菌和其他支原体 病人。最近的支原体，特别是发酵支原体菌株 隐姓埋名，甚至被认为是艾滋病毒感染的辅助因素。 事实上，人类免疫缺陷复制的调控机制 体外病毒(HIV)确实提示支原体通过哪些分子机制 可能会增加受感染个体的病毒产量。有丝分裂原 支原体的特性可以增加感染者的艾滋病毒产量 淋巴细胞。事实上，作用于T细胞的其他有丝分裂原是已知的 在体外促进艾滋病毒的产生。众所周知，病毒产量的增加 与艾滋病毒感染者的临床进展有关。 然而，发病率、自然病史、致病潜力和 发酵支原体在艾滋病患者中的临床意义尚不清楚。在……里面 此外，之前的流行病学调查还没有证明 ADS的进展与任何推定的 辅因。我们的长期目标是确定发酵分枝杆菌是否 要么是HIV感染的辅助因素，要么是重要的机会主义者 病原体。如果发酵支原体是其中之一，那么重要的是 确定感染的自然病史。《公约》的具体目标 本申请旨在：(I)鉴定发酵支原体的位置 艾滋病患者及其他患者尸检组织中的定位 免疫抑制或其他慢性衰弱疾病；(2)确定 与发酵分枝杆菌和发酵分枝杆菌混合感染的艾滋病毒感染者 确定HIV阳性、发酵支原体阴性的匹配对照； 以及(Iii)确定各种参数的变化率， 包括艾滋病毒复制增加，CD4+淋巴细胞下降或 其他淋巴细胞亚群的改变和免疫力的丧失 带有发酵支原体的HIV感染者的反应性更强 感染情况与感染艾滋病毒的非发酵支原体感染情况匹配 控制。

Within the past 24 months, Mycoplasma fermentans, strain incognitus, has been detected in tissues taken at autopsies from AIDS patients with respiratory, central nervous system (CNS), and renal disease. At the 1991 general meeting of the American Society for Microbiology, increased incidence of M. fermentans was shown in the urine of AIDS patients compared to age and sex-matched non-AIDS patients. In addition, M. fermentans and other mycoplasmas have been reported in the blood of AIDS patients. More recently mycoplasmas, especially M. fermentans strain incognitus, have even been proposed to be cofactors for HIV infection. In fact regulatory mechanisms of replication of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in vitro do suggest molecular mechanisms by which mycoplasmas could increase virus production in infected individuals. The mitogenic properties of mycoplasmas could increase HIV production in infected lymphocytes. Indeed other mitogens that act on T cells are known to enhance HIV production in vitro. Increased virus production is known to be associated with clinical progression in HIV-infected individuals. However, the incidence, natural history, pathogenic potential, and clinical significance of M.fermentans in AIDS patients is unknown. In addition, previous epidemiologic investigations have not yet demonstrated any clear association between progression of ADDS and any putative cofactor. Our long term goals are to determine if M. fermentans is either a cofactor in HIV infection or an important opportunistic pathogen. If M.fermentans is either, it then becomes important to determine the natural history of the infection. The specific aims of the present application are to: (i) identify sites of M.fermentans localization in autopsy tissues of AIDS patients and other patients with immunosuppression or other chronic debilitating diseases; (ii) identify HIV infected individuals who are co-infected with M. fermentans and identify matched controls who are HIV positive, M. fermentans negative; and (iii) determine if the rate of change in various parameters, including increase in HIV replication, decline in CD4+ lymphocytes or alterations in other lymphocyte subpopulations, and loss of immune responsiveness is greater in HIV-infected individuals with M. fermentans infection as compared to HIV-infected non-M.fermentans infected matched controls.