The role of T cell diversity in the pathogenesis of TB-IRIS in HIV/aids patients in Uganda

The Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome (IRIS) is an early complication after initiation of effective antiretroviral therapy (ART) in HIV-infected patients. TB-IRIS is the unmasking of a newly identified or paradoxical worsening of a previously treated tuberculosis infection associated with reconstitution of the immune system after start of ART therapy. The pathogenesis of TB-IRIS is still unknown. It is postulated that it occurs when T cell immune responses are unevenly reconstituted after introduction of ART therapy in the presence of a high burden of M. tuberculosis antigens. Molecular and immunology techniques will be used to investigate the restoration profiles of T cells and the T cell receptor diversity that are associated with TB-IRIS. The overall aim of this study is to understand the role of T cell diversity in the pathogenesis of TB-IRIS.