Zhao Yang, Yang Jiong, Gao Ya-Dong
Department of Respiratory Medicine, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
J Asthma. 2011 Jun;48(5):429-36. doi: 10.3109/02770903.2011.570403. Epub 2011 Apr 15.
T cells play an important role in orchestrating allergic asthma by producing various cytokines; however, little information is available on the phenotype of cytokine-producing T cells, especially CD8(+) T and γδ T cells in humans.
The aim of this study was to investigate the role of cytokine expressions from circulating CD4(+), CD8(+), and γδ T cells in patients with allergic asthma.
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were isolated from patients with allergic asthma (n = 29) and healthy controls (n = 12). The percentage of helper T cell (Th)1-, Th2-, and Th17-type cytokines interferon-γ (IFN-γ), interleukin (IL)-4, and IL-17, respectively, of CD4(+), CD8(+), and γδ T cells was analyzed by flow cytometry.
The percentages of IL-4(+) and IL-17(+) CD4(+) T cells increased, whereas IFN-γ(+) CD4(+) T cells decreased in patients with allergic asthma compared with healthy controls. The frequency of IL-17(+) CD4(+) T cells tended to increase with the severity of allergic asthma. Higher frequency of IL-4-producing and lower frequency of IFN-γ-producing CD8(+) and γδ T cells were found in patients with allergic asthma compared with healthy controls. The IFN-γ(+)/IL-17(+) ratio among CD4(+), CD8(+), and γδ T cells was significantly decreased in patients with allergic asthma compared with healthy controls.
CD8(+) and γδ T cells might be involved in the pathogenesis of allergic asthma through the release of Th1-, Th2-, and Th17-type cytokines.
T细胞通过产生多种细胞因子在过敏性哮喘的发生发展中发挥重要作用；然而，关于产生细胞因子的T细胞表型，尤其是人类CD8(+) T细胞和γδ T细胞的相关信息却很少。
本研究旨在探讨循环中CD4(+)、CD8(+)和γδ T细胞产生的细胞因子表达在过敏性哮喘患者中的作用。
从过敏性哮喘患者（n = 29）和健康对照者（n = 12）中分离外周血单个核细胞。通过流式细胞术分析CD4(+)、CD8(+)和γδ T细胞中辅助性T细胞（Th）1型、Th2型和Th17型细胞因子，即干扰素-γ（IFN-γ）、白细胞介素（IL）-4和IL-17的百分比。
与健康对照相比，过敏性哮喘患者中IL-4(+)和IL-17(+) CD4(+) T细胞百分比增加，而IFN-γ(+) CD4(+) T细胞百分比降低。IL-17(+) CD4(+) T细胞频率随过敏性哮喘严重程度增加而升高。与健康对照相比，过敏性哮喘患者中产生IL-4的CD8(+)和γδ T细胞频率更高，产生IFN-γ的CD8(+)和γδ T细胞频率更低。与健康对照相比，过敏性哮喘患者CD4(+)、CD8(+)和γδ T细胞中IFN-γ(+)/IL-17(+)比值显著降低。
CD8(+)和γδ T细胞可能通过释放Th1型、Th2型和Th17型细胞因子参与过敏性哮喘的发病机制。
