Effect of cyclosporin A on natural killer cells' response during viral infections.

In the this study the modification of lymphocyte subsets (T3, T4, T8) and Natural Killer (NK) cells in organ transplanted patients treated with Cyclosporin A (CyA) in the course of viral infection, have been analyzed. Different subsets have been studied with the monoclonal antibody method and infective processes have been verified by serological data of seroconversion. Our study has shown that CyA at the adopted doses does not alter NK response to viral infection; in fact, in patients with seroconversion, higher NK values and lower OKT4/OKT8 ratio values have been found with respect to patients who did not show any viral infection serologic data. Furthermore an increased incidence of reject crisis has been observed in patients with seroconversion.