Peripheral lymphocyte subsets and their responsiveness in human strongyloidiasis.

Surface phenotypes and proliferative responses of peripheral lymphocytes were investigated in a total of 64 patients with strongyloidiasis. A significant increase of CD4+ and OKIa1+ cells and a relative decrease of CD8+ cells were observed among the patients. A considerable rise of spontaneous mitogenesis and an enhanced ability to produce interleukin 2 of peripheral lymphocytes were also found in many patients. On the other hand, lymphoproliferative responses to mitogens were found to be significantly lower in the strongyloidiasis patients than in the controls. The possible relationships among these observations were discussed.