CHANGES IN THE CYTOKINE PROFILE AND CELLULAR IMMUNITY PARAMETERS IN PATIENTS WITH UTERINE CERVICAL DYSPLASIA INDUCED BY PAPILLOMAVIRUSES

Objective. To study the production of interferon-а and interferon-y and other pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and the subpopulational composition of peripheral blood lymphocytes in patients with human papillomavirus (HPV)-induced uterine cervical dysplasia. Subjects and methods. Fifty-four patients with HPV-induced cervical dysplasia of different grades (CIN I, CIN II, CIN III, and cancer in situ) and a control group of 10 clinically healthy women were examined. Their cervical specimens were tested for HPV DNA and specific cytomorphological, histological, and colposcopic markers in HPV-affected tissues by polymerase chain reaction. The peripheral blood serum levels of IFN-y, IFN-а, IL-1ß, IL-2, IL-4, IL-10, and TNF-а and the count of T lymphocytes and their individual subpopulations were measured. Results. In HPV-induced cervical dysplasia, the serum samples were found to have decreased IFN-а and IFN-y concentrations with a simultaneous increase in the levels of the proinflammatory cytokines TNF-а and IL-1ß, as well as the Th2-type cytokine IL-4. The concentration of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was reduced. In CIN III and cancer in situ, there were abnormal cellular immunity parameters, as confirmed by the decreased peripheral blood count of CD3+/HLA-DR+ Т lymphocytes and the lower immunoregulatory index CD4/CD8. In patients with CIN III and cancer in situ, the serum concentration of IFN-y was lower than that in those with CIN I and CIN II. Conclusion. The findings are of great importance in predicting the nature of development of an immune response in HPV-induced cervical dysplasia.

cervix uteri, dysplasia, papillomavirus, cytokines, immunity