Prell Christine, Konstantopoulos Nikolaos, Heinzelmann Beatrix, Frankenberger Bernhard, Reinhardt Dietrich, Schendel Dolores J, Krauss-Etschmann Susanne
Childrens Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.
Immunobiology. 2003;208(4):367-80. doi: 10.1078/0171-2985-00284.
Th2 cells play a central role in type I allergies. However, the source of interleukin-4 which may lead to a Th1/Th2 imbalance is unknown. Valpha24+CD161+ Natural killer T (NKT) cells secrete high amounts of interleukin-4 and/or interferon-gamma and are assumed to participate in the initiation of Th1/Th2 immune responses. Their contribution to the development of Th2-dependent type I allergies is controversial. Our objective in this paper was to determine whether Valpha24+CD161+ NKT cells differ in atopic and non-atopic adults. Venous blood was obtained from thirteen atopic and sixteen healthy adult probands. Valpha24+CD161+ NKT cells were determined in CD4+, CD8(bright/dim) and CD4-CD8- lymphocytes by flow cytometry. At the molecular level, the amounts of T cell receptor (TCR) AV24-AJ18 transcripts were quantified with respect to TCRAV24 chain transcripts alone or to all TCR alpha chain transcripts. To detect potential inserted nucleotides in the N-region, a novel real-time PCR-based technology was applied. Both CD4+ and CD4-CD8- NKT cells were present at higher frequencies than CD8+ NKT cells in all probands. CD8(dim) NKT cell levels were lower in healthy individuals, although not statistically significantly different to the patients. Amounts of AV24-AJ18 transcripts in relation to total TCR alpha-chains and to TCRAV24 alone were equal in both proband groups. N-region diversity was detected in four clones from four different individuals, but altered the amino acid sequence in only one clone of an atopic donor. Analysis of Valpha24+CD161+ NKT cell frequencies at both the cellular and molecular levels failed to reveal significant differences in peripheral blood of atopic and non-atopic probands. If NKT cells contribute to development of type I allergies they must do so at earlier times or in other locations.
辅助性T细胞2（Th2细胞）在I型过敏反应中起核心作用。然而，可能导致Th1/Th2失衡的白细胞介素-4的来源尚不清楚。Vα24⁺CD161⁺自然杀伤T（NKT）细胞分泌大量白细胞介素-4和/或干扰素-γ，并被认为参与Th1/Th2免疫反应的启动。它们对Th2依赖性I型过敏反应发展的作用存在争议。本文的目的是确定Vα24⁺CD161⁺NKT细胞在特应性和非特应性成年人中是否存在差异。从13名特应性和16名健康成年受试者中采集静脉血。通过流式细胞术在CD4⁺、CD8（明亮/暗淡）和CD4⁻CD8⁻淋巴细胞中测定Vα24⁺CD161⁺NKT细胞。在分子水平上，相对于单独的T细胞受体（TCR）AV24-AJ18转录本或所有TCRα链转录本，对TCR AV24-AJ18转录本的量进行定量。为了检测N区域中潜在的插入核苷酸，应用了一种基于实时PCR的新技术。在所有受试者中，CD4⁺和CD4⁻CD8⁻NKT细胞的频率均高于CD8⁺NKT细胞。健康个体中CD8（暗淡）NKT细胞水平较低，尽管与患者相比无统计学显著差异。两个受试者组中，相对于总TCRα链和单独的TCRAV24，AV24-AJ18转录本的量相等。在来自四个不同个体的四个克隆中检测到N区域多样性，但仅在一名特应性供体的一个克隆中改变了氨基酸序列。在细胞和分子水平上对Vα24⁺CD161⁺NKT细胞频率的分析未能揭示特应性和非特应性受试者外周血中的显著差异。如果NKT细胞对I型过敏反应的发展有贡献，那么它们必定在更早的时间或其他部位发挥作用。
