Investigation of the relationships among respiratory syncytial virus infection, T cell immune response and intestinal flora

H.-T. Zheng, Q.-Y. Zhao, Y. Ding, S.-X. Ma, W.-X. Chen, J.-L. Qiu, X.-F. Li, X.-X Sun, Y.-J. Zhang, B. Yuan, Y.-B. Yan

Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, Henan, China. yanyongbin827@sina.com

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• Infectious Diseases
• Respiratory Medicine

The aim of this work was to evaluate the relationships among respiratory syncytial virus infection, T cell immune response and intestinal flora.

Peer-reviewed papers published in English were collected through extensive searches performed in PubMed, Web of Science, Google Scholar, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure databases. The articles were reviewed to extract relevant information on the immune responses of Th1/Th2 and Treg/Th17 to respiratory syncytial virus infection in the body.

RSV (Respiratory syncytial virus, RSV) infection leads to imbalance between Th1/Th2 and Treg/Th17 immune cells, resulting in Th2 or Th17 dominant immune responses, which can generate immune disorder and aggravate clinical symptoms. Intestinal micro-organisms play very important roles in maintaining stable immune environment, stimulating immune system maturation and balancing Th1/Th2 and Treg/Th17 immune systems in children. In our review of various papers from around the world, we speculated that the steady state of intestinal bacteria was disturbed after children got infected with RSV, resulting in intestinal flora disorder. Then, the imbalance between Th1/Th2 and Treg/Th17 immune cells was increased. Both intestinal flora disorder and RSV infection could cause cellular immunity imbalance of Th1/Th2 or Treg/Th17, eventually leading to disease deterioration and even a vicious cycle. Normal intestinal flora can maintain immune system stability, regulate the dynamic balance of Th1/Th2 and Treg/Th17 and prevent or mitigate adverse consequences of RSV infection.

Because probiotics can improve intestinal barrier function and regulate immune response, they can effectively be used to treat children with recurrent respiratory tract infections. Using conventional antiviral therapy strategy supplemented with probiotics in the treatment of clinical RSV infection may be better for the body.

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