Among several Th1/Th2/Th17 profile-related cytokines, only IL-6 was overexpressed in HIV-<i>T. cruzi</i> coinfection exhibiting its cytoprotective role.This study demonstrates that <i>T. cruzi</i> and HIV are able to coinfect astrocytes thus altering viral replication and apoptosis.
The production of interferon (alpha-1 interferon [IFN-alpha 1], IFN-alpha 2, and IFN-beta), interleukin (interleukin 1 alpha [IL-1 alpha], IL-1 beta, and IL-6), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) mRNA was characterized by quantitative polymerase chain reaction mRNA phenotyping in U937 and U9-IIIB cells following coinfection with Sendai paramyxovirus or stimulation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS).