Kamekura Ryuta, Shigehara Katsunori, Miyajima Satsuki, Jitsukawa Sumito, Kawata Koji, Yamashita Keiji, Nagaya Tomonori, Kumagai Ayako, Sato Akinori, Matsumiya Hiroshi, Ogasawara Noriko, Seki Nobuhiko, Takano Kenichi, Kokai Yasuo, Takahashi Hiroki, Himi Tetsuo, Ichimiya Shingo
Department of Human Immunology, Research Institute for Frontier Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan; Department of Otolaryngology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
Department of Human Immunology, Research Institute for Frontier Medicine, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan; Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan; Sapporo Respiratory Hospital, Sapporo, Japan.
Clin Immunol. 2015 Jun;158(2):204-11. doi: 10.1016/j.clim.2015.02.016. Epub 2015 Mar 28.
Allergic rhinitis (AR), the most common allergic disorder of the airway, is often accompanied by bronchial asthma. However, little is known about the mechanism by which AR advances to AR comorbid with bronchial asthma (AR+Asthma). To determine the pathophysiologic features of AR and AR+Asthma, we examined subsets of follicular helper T (Tfh) cells and regulatory B (Breg) cells in peripheral blood from AR and AR+Asthma patients. The results showed polarization of Tfh2 cells within Tfh cell subsets in both AR and AR+Asthma cases. Interestingly, the %Breg cells in total B cells were decreased in AR cases and, more extensively, in AR+Asthma cases. Moreover, we found significant correlations of fractional exhaled nitric oxide and blood eosinophil levels with the index %Tfh2 cells per %Breg cells. Our findings indicate that relative decrease in Breg cells under the condition of Tfh2 cell skewing is a putative exaggerating factor of AR to bronchial asthma.
变应性鼻炎（AR）是气道最常见的变应性疾病，常伴有支气管哮喘。然而，关于AR进展为合并支气管哮喘的变应性鼻炎（AR+哮喘）的机制，我们知之甚少。为了确定AR和AR+哮喘的病理生理特征，我们检测了AR和AR+哮喘患者外周血中滤泡辅助性T（Tfh）细胞和调节性B（Breg）细胞亚群。结果显示，在AR和AR+哮喘病例中，Tfh细胞亚群内均有Tfh2细胞极化。有趣的是，AR病例中总B细胞中的Breg细胞百分比降低，在AR+哮喘病例中降低得更明显。此外，我们发现呼出一氧化氮分数和血液嗜酸性粒细胞水平与每%Breg细胞中%Tfh2细胞指数显著相关。我们的研究结果表明，在Tfh2细胞偏向的情况下，Breg细胞相对减少是AR发展为支气管哮喘的一个假定的放大因素。
