Cytokines and regulatory T cells in ankylosing spondylitis

Bone & Joint Research

article

Hsien-Tzung Liao¹  Chang-Youh Tsai¹ 

[1] Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital

关键词: Cytokine;    Regulatory T cell;    Ankylosing spondylitis;    Anti-tumour necrosis factor-α;    ankylosing spondylitis (AS);    cytokines;    inflammatory cytokines;    IL-10;    Serum;    mononuclear cells;    interleukin;    CRP;    blood;    anti-tumour necrosis factor;   

DOI  :  10.1302/2046-3758.122.BJR-2022-0195.R1

学科分类：骨科学

来源: British Editorial Society Of Bone And Joint Surgery

【 摘 要 】

AimsTo investigate the correlations among cytokines and regulatory T cells (T-regs) in ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients, and their changes after anti-tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) treatment.MethodsWe included 72 AS patients with detailed medical records, disease activity score (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index), functional index (Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Functional Index), and laboratory data (interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-10, TNF-α, interferon (IFN)-γ, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, ESR, and CRP). Their peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were marked with anti-CD4, anti-CD25, and anti-FoxP3 antibodies, and triple positive T cells were gated by flow cytometry as T-regs. Their correlations were calculated and the changes after anti-TNF-α therapy were compared.ResultsThe frequency of T-regs in PBMCs was positively correlated to ESR and CRP in AS (r = 0.35 and 0.43; p = 0.032 and 0.027, respectively), and there was also a significant correlation between serum level of TNF-α and CRP (p = 0.041). The frequency of T-regs in PBMCs positively correlated to serum levels of TNF-α, IL-10, and TGF-β, while IL-2, IL-4, and IFN-γ showed opposite results. After anti-TNF-α treatment, there were significantly lower serum levels of TNF-α, IL-10, TGF-β, and frequency of T-regs in PBMCs among these AS patients (p = 0.026, 0.032, 0.029, and 0.037, respectively).ConclusionIn AS patients, proinflammatory cytokine may give positive feedback to induce more T-reg production and anti-inflammatory cytokine secretion to suppress this inflammatory status, and they can be reversed by anti-TNF-α therapy. However, the detailed interactions among T-regs and complex cytokine networks in autoinflammatory diseases still need more studies and further functional assay.

【 授权许可】

CC BY-NC