Authors
Ratna Dewi Indi Astuti^1,2,*, Anggraini Alam³,*, Mohammad Ghozali ⁴,*, Budi Setiabudiawan ^3,5,*

Affiliations
¹Doctoral Study Program, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, West Java, 40161, Indonesia; ² Department of Microbiology-Parasitology of Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Islam Bandung, Bandung, West Java, 40116, Indonesia; ³Department of Child Health of Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran & Hasan Sadikin General Hospital, Bandung, West Java, 40161, Indonesia; ⁴ Department of Biomedical Sciences of Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, West Java, 40161, Indonesia; ⁵ Faculty of Medicine, President University, Cikarang Bekasi, West Java, 17550, Indonesia

Background

• Dengue severity is shaped by viral load and the host’s immune response.

• Aedes aegypti saliva increases cell numbers at the bite site, which may promote viral replication.

• Atopic dermatitis (AD) involves hypersensitivity to Aedes saliva and a Th2-skewed immune response, and both AD and severe dengue are more common in children.

Methods

• Observational cross-sectional study of 62 children aged 1–12 years with secondary dengue.

• AD history was assessed with the ISAAC questionnaire.

• T-cell function was measured as IFNγ, IL-10, IL-13, and CCL2 levels in stimulated whole blood cultures, with and without Aedes aegypti salivary gland extract (SGE), using ELISA.

Key Results

• Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) was more common in dengue patients with AD than in those without AD (p = 0.010).

• With SGE, CCL2 was higher in DHF than in dengue fever (p = 0.044), and IL-13 was higher in patients with AD (p = 0.026).

• Without SGE, IFNγ was lower in DHF than in dengue fever (p = 0.035).

Discussion & Conclusion

• AD may be linked to a higher incidence of DHF and greater T-cell IL-13 production in response to Aedes saliva.

• Higher CCL2 in DHF may reflect greater cell infiltration at the bite site, while lower IFNγ suggests a weaker T-cell response to dengue infection.

Related SDGs

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being – Understanding immune factors behind severe dengue in children

Journal Information

Journal: Journal of Inflammation Research

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2147/JIR.S580550