Department of Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Anesthesiology, Department of Pain Treatment, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, 5 Donghai Middle Road, Qingdao, 266071, China.
Arch Dermatol Res. 2013 Oct;305(8):715-22. doi: 10.1007/s00403-013-1367-0. Epub 2013 May 21.
This study is to analyze distribution of peripheral T cell subsets including regulatory T cells in patients with acute herpes zoster (AHZ) and investigate its relationship to the development of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). T lymphocyte subsets in peripheral blood from 76 patients with AHZ and 38 normal controls were analyzed using flow cytometry. According to the visual analogue scales in the acuter phase and followed up by PHN for 3 months, patients with herpes zoster (HZ) were divided into different patient groups. The results demonstrated a significant decrease in the percentage of CD4 lymphocytes and CD4/CD8 ratios in each patient group as compared with normal controls, and the CD4+ subsets in the severe group were significantly decreased as compared with mild group and moderate group (p < 0.01). Moreover, there seemed a relationship between severity of acute pain during zoster and PHN. The proportions of regulatory T cells (Treg; CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ T cells) were significantly elevated from AHZ patients as compared with normal controls, and CD4+ T cells were inversely correlated with Treg cells (p < 0.01). Furthermore, FoxP3 expression was significantly increased by CD4+CD25(high) T cells in the severe group as compared with mild group, moderate group and normal controls. These results indicated that T cellular immunity in AHZ patients was impaired and suggested increased activation of Treg cells may suppress anti-viral CD4+ T cells immune responses, especially in the severe HZ patients. Treg cells may play an important role in the pathogenesis of AHZ and progression toward PHN.
本研究旨在分析急性带状疱疹（AHZ）患者外周血 T 细胞亚群（包括调节性 T 细胞）的分布，并探讨其与带状疱疹后神经痛（PHN）发生的关系。采用流式细胞术分析 76 例 AHZ 患者和 38 例正常对照者外周血 T 淋巴细胞亚群。根据急性期视觉模拟评分（VAS），并随访 3 个月 PHN，将带状疱疹患者分为不同患者组。结果表明，与正常对照组相比，各患者组 CD4 淋巴细胞和 CD4/CD8 比值均显著降低，重度组 CD4+亚群与轻度组和中度组相比显著降低（p<0.01）。此外，疱疹急性疼痛的严重程度似乎与 PHN 有关。与正常对照组相比，调节性 T 细胞（Treg；CD4+CD25+FoxP3+T 细胞）在 AHZ 患者中的比例显著升高，且 CD4+T 细胞与 Treg 细胞呈负相关（p<0.01）。此外，重度组 CD4+CD25（高）T 细胞中 FoxP3 的表达明显高于轻度组、中度组和正常对照组。这些结果表明 AHZ 患者的 T 细胞免疫功能受损，提示 Treg 细胞的过度激活可能抑制抗病毒 CD4+T 细胞免疫反应，尤其是在重度 HZ 患者中。Treg 细胞可能在 AHZ 的发病机制和向 PHN 进展中发挥重要作用。
