Dataset Information

The Circulating Treg/Th17 Cell Ratio Is Correlated with Relapse and Treatment Response in Pulmonary Sarcoidosis Patients after Corticosteroid Withdrawal.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Pulmonary sarcoidosis is an immune-mediated disease, and some patients can be effectively treated with corticosteroids. However, nearly half of all sarcoidosis patients relapse after corticosteroid withdrawal. Different subsets of CD4+ helper T cells participate in the immunopathogenesis of sarcoidosis. Thus, the aims of our study were to investigate whether the circulating subsets of CD4+ helper T cells were associated with sarcoidosis relapse and with its remission after retreatment. Additionally, we identified a useful biomarker for predicting the relapse and remission of sarcoidosis patients.

Methods

Forty-two patients were enrolled in the present study who had previously been diagnosed with pulmonary sarcoidosis and treated with corticosteroids. The patients were allocated into either a stable group if they exhibited sustained remission (n = 22) or a relapse group if they experienced clinical or radiological recurrence after treatment withdrawal (n = 20). Peripheral blood cells were collected from these patients and analyzed to determine the frequencies of subsets of circulating CD4+ helper T cells by flow cytometry. The patients in the relapse group were retreated with corticosteroids and immunosuppressive agents and were then reevaluated to determine the frequencies of dynamic subsets of circulating CD4+ helper T cells after remission.

Results

The frequencies of circulating Tregs were significantly increased concomitant with a decrease in the circulating Th17 cell frequency in the relapsed patients compared with the stable patients. The Treg/Th17 ratio was negatively correlated with sarcoidosis activity and was sensitive to retreatment. In addition, the percentage of isolated CD45RO+Ki67+ Tregs was higher in the patients who were stable and in those who recovered after retreatment than in those who relapsed.

Conclusions

An imbalance between Tregs and Th17 cells is associated with pulmonary sarcoidosis relapse after corticosteroid withdrawal. The circulating Treg/Th17 ratio could serve as an alternative marker for monitoring pulmonary sarcoidosis relapse after the end of corticosteroid treatment and for rapidly predicting the response to retreatment.

SUBMITTER: Liu Y

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4742270 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

The Circulating Treg/Th17 Cell Ratio Is Correlated with Relapse and Treatment Response in Pulmonary Sarcoidosis Patients after Corticosteroid Withdrawal.

Liu Yongzhe Y Qiu Lan L Wang Yanxun Y Aimurola Halimulati H Zhao Yuyue Y Li Shan S Xu Zuojun Z

PloS one 20160204 2

<h4>Objectives</h4>Pulmonary sarcoidosis is an immune-mediated disease, and some patients can be effectively treated with corticosteroids. However, nearly half of all sarcoidosis patients relapse after corticosteroid withdrawal. Different subsets of CD4+ helper T cells participate in the immunopathogenesis of sarcoidosis. Thus, the aims of our study were to investigate whether the circulating subsets of CD4+ helper T cells were associated with sarcoidosis relapse and with its remission after ret ...[more]

PMID: 26845566

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Project description:AIM:Atherosclerosis (AS) characterized as a chronic inflammatory disease. Multiple immune cells and inflammatory cytokines, such as high mobility group protein (HMGB1), regulatory T (Treg) cells, T helper (Th17) cells, and inflammation-related cytokines, play a key role in its pathophysiology. A large number of studies report that HMGB1 and Th17 cells may promote atherosclerosis progression, whereas Treg cells may play a protective role in atherosclerosis; thus, alterations in the Treg/Th17 ratio may exist in atherosclerosis diseases. Up till now, the relationships between HMGB1 levels and the Treg/Th17 ratio remain incompletely understood. The major purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between HMGB1 levels and the Treg/Th17 ratio in patients with coronary artery atherosclerotic plaques. METHODS:We enrolled patients with coronary atherosclerosis and normal coronary artery as the research subjects. Flow cytometry was used to analyze the Treg cells, the Th17 cells frequency, and the Treg/Th17 ratio. Otherwise, real-time polymerase chain reaction was used for assays the mRNA expressions of HMGB1, retinoic acid-related orphan nuclear receptor C (RORC), and forkhead-winged helix transcription factor (Foxp3). Moreover, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to detect the level of protein and cytokines, such as HMGB1, IL-10, TGF-?1, IL-17A, and IL-23. RESULTS:Using flow cytometry, we observed a significantly increased of Th17 cell frequency, whereas Treg cell frequency significantly decreased in atherosclerotic patients. Consistently, the levels of RORC mRNA were significantly increased in coronary atherosclerosis (AS) group compared to normal coronary artery (NCA) group (P?0.01). In contrast, the expression of Foxp3 mRNA was markedly lower in the AS group than in the NCA group (P?0.01). Furthermore, we observed the serum concentrations of HMGB1, IL-17A, and IL-23 were significantly higher in the AS group than in the NCA group (P?0.01, respectively), whereas the concentrations of serum IL-10 and TGF-?1 were significantly lower in the AS group than in the NCA group (P?0.01, respectively). In addition, we also found that HMGB1 levels showed negative correlation with the Treg/Th17 ratio in the two groups (r=?0.6984, P?0.01). CONCLUSIONS:The data in our study indicated that HMGB1 may promote atherosclerosis progression via modulating the imbalance in the Treg/Th17 ratio.

Dataset Information

The Circulating Treg/Th17 Cell Ratio Is Correlated with Relapse and Treatment Response in Pulmonary Sarcoidosis Patients after Corticosteroid Withdrawal.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

The Circulating Treg/Th17 Cell Ratio Is Correlated with Relapse and Treatment Response in Pulmonary Sarcoidosis Patients after Corticosteroid Withdrawal.

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