JOURNAL ARTICLE
REVIEW
Add like
Add dislike
Add to saved papers

Nutrition in pediatric HIV infection: setting the research agenda. Nutrition and immune function: overview.

Malnutrition can have adverse, even devastating effects on the antigen-specific arms of the immune system and on generalized host defensive mechanisms. Protein/energy malnutrition and/or deficiencies of single nutrients that assist in nucleic acid metabolism generally lead to atrophy of lymphoid tissues and dysfunctions of cell-mediated immunity. Deficiencies of single nutrients can impair production of key proteins. Trace element deficiencies are often multifactorial. Essential fatty acid deficiencies can reduce or perturb the synthesis of cytokine-induced eicosanoids. Arginine deficiency can diminish the production of nitric oxide, and deficiencies of antioxidant nutrients can allow increases in the damaging effects of free oxygen radicals. Humoral immunity continues to be maintained, although new primary responses to T-cell-dependent antigens are generally subnormal in both magnitude and quality. Immunological dysfunctions associated with malnutrition have been termed Nutritionally Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (NAIDS). Infants and small children are at great risk because they possess only immature, inexperienced immune systems and very small protein reserves. The combination of NAIDS and common childhood infections is the leading cause of human mortality. NAIDS can generally be corrected by appropriate nutritional rehabilitation, but from a viewpoint highly important to this Workshop, AIDS and NAIDS are intensely synergistic. AIDS-induced malnutrition can lead to the secondary development of NAIDS, with its much broader array of additional immunological dysfunctions. The complex and far reaching insults to the immune system caused by NAIDS, and the synergistic combination of NAIDS and AIDS, thereby hasten the demise of many victims of AIDS. Aggressive nutritional support for children with HIV infections could delay, or lessen, the development of NAIDS and avoidance of NAIDS would improve both quality and length of life.

Full text links

We have located links that may give you full text access.
Can't access the paper?
Try logging in through your university/institutional subscription. For a smoother one-click institutional access experience, please use our mobile app.

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

Mobile app image

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app

All material on this website is protected by copyright, Copyright © 1994-2024 by WebMD LLC.
This website also contains material copyrighted by 3rd parties.

By using this service, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Your Privacy Choices Toggle icon

You can now claim free CME credits for this literature searchClaim now

Get seemless 1-tap access through your institution/university

For the best experience, use the Read mobile app