Cytokine serum levels in patients infected by human immunodeficiency virus with and without Trypanosoma cruzi coinfection Níveis séricos de citocinas em pacientes infectados pelo vírus da imunodeficiência humana com e sem coinfecção pelo Trypanosoma cruzi

This study assessed the number of CD4 T lymphocytes, the parasitemia and serum levels of interferon gamma (IFN-γ), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 (IL-1), IL-4 and IL-10 of patients infected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and human immunodeficiency virus/Chagas’ disease coinfection. CD4 T lymphocytes were low in the two groups of patients, although significantly lower in patients without Chagas’ disease. Serum levels of IFN-γ, IL-4 and TNF-α were significantly higher in patients with HIV/Chagas’ disease. IL-4/IFN-γ ratios were higher in patients with HIV/Chagas’ disease, which showed a clear balance in favor of Th2-like cytokines in this group of patients. This Th2 balance was higher in patients with detectable parasitemia. We conclude that, although immunosuppression was observed, with CD4 T lymphocytes bellow 200/μm, these patients did not display reactivation of T. cruzi infection and that a balance favorable to Th2 was associated with the presence of parasitemia. Key-words: Cytokine. Chagas’ disease. Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Trypanosoma cruzi.