Lymphocyte Subgroups in Different Forms of Tuberculosis

Objective: The balance between the bacillus and host defense mechanisms seems to be important for manifestations of tuberculosis infection. Not only subtypes of T-lymphocytes but their activation status also is important in the immunity of tuberculosis infection. The aim of this study is to address the relationship between T-lymphocyte subtypes, activation and natural killer cells with different clinical forms of mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.Material and Method: Twenty-one active pulmonary tuberculosis, 10 inactive pulmonary tuberculosis, 10 tuberculous pleurisy patients and 18 healthy subjects were involved in the study. Immunophenotyping was carried out in peripheral blood for T cell subtypes, natural killer cells and B cells by flow-cytometry, and HLA-DR and CD25 positivity were studied to determine T-lymphocyte activation.Results: The CD4+ T lymphocyte rates was found significantly lower in bilateral active pulmonary tuberculosis compared to healthy controls. T-lymphocyte activation was found to be increased in tuberculous pleurisy cases. The CD3/CD25+ T lymphocyte rate was sinificantly higher in tuberculous pleurisy cases compared both to healthy controls and inactive pulmonary tuberculosis cases. Conclusion: CD4+ T-lymphocyte rate may be decreased in pulmonary tuberculosis patients with bilateral pulmonary infiltration. Prominent T-lymphocyte activation in tuberculous pleurisy might be a result of a hypersensitivity reaction against the bacillus.