NATURAL-KILLER CELL-ACTIVITY AND LYMPHOCYTE SUBSETS IN PARENTERAL HEROIN ABUSERS AND LONG-TERM METHADONE-MAINTENANCE PATIENTS

  • 1 August 1989
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 250  (2) , 606-610
Abstract
We studied natural killer (NK) activity and lymphocyte subsets in 11 active parenteral heroin abusers, 11 long-term methadone-maintained former heroin abusers and 11 apparently healthy individuals. All subjects were males aged 23 to 49 and none had active infectious or inflammatory diseases. All current or former heroin abusers were seronegative for antibody to human immunodeficiency virus. The methadone maintenance patients were sociall rehabilitated and had not abused drugs parenterally for at least 10 years. NK activity was determined by a standard Cr-release cytotoxicity assay using K562 cells are targets, and lymphocyte subsets were determined by direct immunofluoresence using flow cytometry. At all three effector-target ratios (100:1, 50:1 and 25:1), NK activity was reduced significnatly (P < .01) in parenteral heroin abusers compared with methadone maintenance patients and apparently healthy individuals. The latter two gropus did not differ from each other. Parenteral heroin abusers also had higher absolute numbers of CD2, CD3, CD4 and CD8-positive cells. These data support our hypothesis that significant abnormalities of cellular immunity in parenteral heroin abusers can be normalized by successful long-term methadone treatment.