Noronha A, Toscas A, Jensen M A
Department of Neurology, University of Chicago, IL 60637.
Ann Neurol. 1992 Jan;31(1):103-6. doi: 10.1002/ana.410310119.
Interferons are biological molecules with antiviral, antiproliferative, and immunomodulatory actions. Interferon alpha (IFN-alpha) and -beta are potentially useful in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). IFN-gamma, in contrast, increases the frequency of exacerbations of MS. In this study, we compared the effect of recombinant human IFN-alpha, -beta, and -gamma on suppressor function in patients with MS. Nonspecific suppressor cell function, measured in a concanavalin A suppressor assay, was significantly decreased in 16 patients with progressive MS (mean percent suppression +/- SEM, 14.4 +/- 5.5 in patients with MS, 33.5 +/- 4.8 in 16 normal subjects; p less than 0.001). Recombinant human IFN-beta augmented suppressor function in MS to 45.4 +/- 5.1% (p less than 0.001) and in control subjects to 56.8 +/- 3.8% (p less than 0.001). Similarly, recombinant human IFN-alpha improved suppression in MS to 43.0 +/- 5.6% (p less than 0.001) and in control subjects to 51.1 +/- 5.9% (p less than 0.001). In contrast, recombinant human IFN-gamma had no effect on suppressor function in patients with MS and in control subjects. This study shows that IFN-alpha and -beta augment deficient suppressor function in MS, whereas IFN-gamma has no effect on suppressor function in the progressive phase of the disease.
干扰素是具有抗病毒、抗增殖和免疫调节作用的生物分子。α干扰素（IFN-α）和β干扰素在治疗多发性硬化症（MS）方面可能具有一定作用。相比之下，γ干扰素会增加MS病情加重的频率。在本研究中，我们比较了重组人IFN-α、β和γ对MS患者抑制功能的影响。在刀豆蛋白A抑制试验中检测的非特异性抑制细胞功能，在16例进行性MS患者中显著降低（MS患者平均抑制百分比±标准误为14.4±5.5，16例正常受试者为33.5±4.8；p<0.001）。重组人IFN-β使MS患者的抑制功能增强至45.4±5.1%（p<0.001），使对照受试者的抑制功能增强至56.8±3.8%（p<0.001）。同样，重组人IFN-α使MS患者的抑制功能改善至43.0±5.6%（p<0.001），使对照受试者的抑制功能改善至51.1±5.9%（p<0.001）。相比之下，重组人γ干扰素对MS患者和对照受试者的抑制功能均无影响。本研究表明，IFN-α和β可增强MS患者缺陷的抑制功能，而γ干扰素在疾病进展期对抑制功能无影响。
