Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)/immunoglobulin G immune complexes in SIV-infected macaques block detection of CD16 but not cytolytic activity of natural killer cells

Natural killer cells are components of the innate immune system that play an important role in eliminating viruses and malignant cells. Using simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection of macaques as a model, flow cytometry revealed a gradual loss of CD16+ NK cell numbers that was associated with disease progression. Of note, the apparent loss of NK cells was detected in whole-blood samples but not in isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), suggesting that an inhibitor(s) of the antibody used to detect CD16, the low-affinity immunoglobulin G (IgG) receptor, was present in blood but was removed during PBMC isolation. (Actual decreases in CD16+ cell numbers in PBMC generally were not detected until animals became lymphopenic.) The putative decrease in CD16+ cell numbers in whole blood correlated with increasing SIV-specific antibody titers and levels of plasma virion RNA. With the addition of increasing amounts of plasma from progressor, but not nonprogressor, macaques to PBMC from an uninfected animal, the apparent percentage of CD16+ cells and the mean fluorescence intensity of antibodies binding to CD16 declined proportionately. A similar decrease was observed with the addition of monomeric IgG (mIgG) and IgG immune complexes (IgG-ICs) purified from the inhibitory plasma samples; some of the ICs contained SIV p27(gag) antigen and/or virions. Of interest, addition of purified IgG/IgG-ICs to NK cell lytic assays did not inhibit killing of K562 cells. These results indicate that during progressive SIV and, by inference, human immunodeficiency virus disease, CD16+ NK cell numbers can be underestimated, or the cells not detected at all, when one is using a whole-blood fluorescence-activated cell sorter assay and a fluorochrome-labeled antibody that can be blocked by mIgG or IgG-ICs. Although this blocking had no apparent effect on NK cell activity in vitro, the in vivo effects are unknown.