Study of the results of tuberculosis interferon-gamma release assays before and after the SARS CoV-2 pandemic

Q3 Medicine

Indian Journal of Tuberculosis Pub Date : 2025-07-01 DOI:10.1016/j.ijtb.2024.05.007

Ameni Jerbi , Sawsan Feki , Lassaad Chtourou , Hend Hachicha , Hela Fourati , Fouzia Ben Amor , Wafa Ben Moallem , Sofien Baklouti , Nabil Tahri , Hatem Masmoudi

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background/objectives

Patients infected with SARS-COV-2 were observed to have a significant occurrence of indeterminate results in interferon-gamma (IFN-ɣ) release assays (IGRAs). However, the results of IGRAs in a post-COVID-19 pandemic context were not studied. We aimed to compare the results of the QuantiFERON®(QFT)-TB Plus test before and after the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Methods

We conducted a comparative study at the Immunology department comparing two groups of QFT-TB requests received for the screening of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI): (A) a control group: including QFT-TB tests received before the COVID-19 pandemic (January 2018–December 2019), and (B) a "post-pandemic" group including QFT-TB tests performed between January and December 2022.

Results

The study included 122 patients, with an average age of 44 years (standard deviation: 1.27) and a female-to-male ratio of 1.17. Of these, 12% exhibited lymphopenia, and 41% were undergoing treatment with immunosuppressive or corticosteroid medications. The control group (n = 60) and the post-pandemic group (n = 62) had comparable rates of negative and positive QFT-TB results (67% vs. 86%, and 5% vs. 6%, respectively). Indeterminate QFT-TB results were significantly higher in the post-pandemic group (8%vs.28%, p = 0.002). Lymphocyte count was significantly lower in the post-pandemic group (1540/μL [400–3430] vs. 2035/μL, p = 0.004) but remained within the lower limit of normal. There was an increased mitogen-induced IFN- ɣ production in the post-pandemic group (6.89 UI/mL [0.1–10] vs. 3.08[0.12–10], p = 0.007). IFN- ɣ production in Nil, Tb1, and Tb2 tubes, white blood cell count, and neutrophil count did not differ between the groups.

Conclusion

In a post-pandemic context, the specific response of T-cells to TB antigens does not seem to be affected. The increased mitogen-induced IFN- ɣ production contrasting with the decreased lymphocyte count is in favor of a sustained cellular immune activation.

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非典型肺炎 CoV-2 流行前后结核病干扰素-γ 释放测定结果的研究

背景/目的观察到感染SARS-COV-2的患者在干扰素- γ (IFN- γ)释放测定（IGRAs）中出现明显的不确定结果。然而，IGRAs在covid -19大流行后背景下的结果尚未研究。我们的目的是比较QuantiFERON®(QFT)-TB Plus检测在SARS-CoV-2大流行前后的结果。方法我们在免疫学部门进行了一项比较研究，比较了两组收到的用于筛查潜伏性结核感染（LTBI）的QFT-TB请求：(a)对照组：包括2019年1月至2019年12月在COVID-19大流行之前接受的QFT-TB测试；(B)“大流行后”组，包括2022年1月至12月进行的QFT-TB测试。结果纳入122例患者，平均年龄44岁（标准差1.27），男女比1.17。其中，12%表现出淋巴细胞减少，41%正在接受免疫抑制剂或皮质类固醇药物治疗。对照组（n = 60）和大流行后组（n = 62）的QFT-TB阴性和阳性检出率相当（分别为67%对86%，5%对6%）。不确定的QFT-TB结果在大流行后组中明显更高(8%vs。28%, p = 0.002)。大流行后组淋巴细胞计数明显降低（1540/μL [400-3430] vs. 2035/μL, p = 0.004），但仍在正常下限范围内。大流行后组有丝裂原诱导的IFN- β产生增加（6.89 UI/mL [0.1-10] vs. 3.08[0.12-10], p = 0.007）。在Nil、Tb1和Tb2管中IFN- β的产生、白细胞计数和中性粒细胞计数在两组之间没有差异。结论：在大流行后的背景下，t细胞对TB抗原的特异性反应似乎不受影响。与减少的淋巴细胞计数相比，丝裂原诱导的IFN- α产生的增加有利于持续的细胞免疫激活。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Indian Journal of Tuberculosis Medicine-Infectious Diseases

CiteScore

2.80

自引率

0.00%

发文量

103

期刊介绍： Indian Journal of Tuberculosis (IJTB) is an international peer-reviewed journal devoted to the specialty of tuberculosis and lung diseases and is published quarterly. IJTB publishes research on clinical, epidemiological, public health and social aspects of tuberculosis. The journal accepts original research articles, viewpoints, review articles, success stories, interesting case series and case reports on patients suffering from pulmonary, extra-pulmonary tuberculosis as well as other respiratory diseases, Radiology Forum, Short Communications, Book Reviews, abstracts, letters to the editor, editorials on topics of current interest etc. The articles published in IJTB are a key source of information on research in tuberculosis. The journal is indexed in Medline