Kitasato University, Towada, Aomori, Japan.
Res Vet Sci. 2012 Feb;92(1):157-61. doi: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2010.10.022. Epub 2010 Nov 11.
Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infection leads to hypergammaglobulinemia through mechanisms that remain poorly understood. We investigated changes in plasma globulin level, B cells, and T cells with progression of the clinical stage of FIV-infected cats. We classified FIV-infected cats into the stage of Asymptomatic carrier (AC) and AIDS-related complex (ARC) based on the clinical symptoms, and measured the plasma globulin level, the CD4(+) T-cell counts, and analyzed surface markers of B cells. We investigated the relationship between the plasma globulin level and regulatory T cells (Tregs) using the Forkhead box P3 (FOXP3) mRNA expression level. In FIV-infected cats, the plasma globulin level and the surface immunoglobulin (sIg)(+) CD21(-) B-cell counts were increased, whereas the CD4(+) T-cell counts were decreased compared with specific-pathogen free (SPF) cats. The mRNA expression of Blimp-1 (master gene of plasma cells) was increased in peripheral blood, and the FOXP3 mRNA expression level was decreased in CD4(+) T-cells. These immunological changes were marked in the ARC stage. These data indicate that the decrease of Tregs and the increase of plasma cells lead to hypergammaglobulinemia.
猫免疫缺陷病毒（FIV）感染通过机制导致高球蛋白血症，但这些机制仍知之甚少。我们研究了随着 FIV 感染猫临床阶段的进展，血浆球蛋白水平、B 细胞和 T 细胞的变化。我们根据临床症状将 FIV 感染猫分为无症状携带者（AC）和 AIDS 相关复合征（ARC）阶段，并测量了血浆球蛋白水平、CD4(+) T 细胞计数，并分析了 B 细胞的表面标记物。我们使用叉头框 P3（FOXP3）mRNA 表达水平研究了血浆球蛋白水平与调节性 T 细胞（Tregs）之间的关系。在 FIV 感染猫中，与无特定病原体（SPF）猫相比，血浆球蛋白水平和表面免疫球蛋白（sIg）（+）CD21（-）B 细胞计数增加，而 CD4(+) T 细胞计数减少。外周血中 Blimp-1（浆细胞的主基因）的 mRNA 表达增加，而 CD4(+) T 细胞中的 FOXP3 mRNA 表达水平降低。这些免疫变化在 ARC 阶段更为明显。这些数据表明，Tregs 的减少和浆细胞的增加导致高球蛋白血症。
