Mohd Ashari N S, Mohamed Sanusi S N F, Mohd Yasin M A, Che Hussin C M, Wong K K, Shafei M N
Universiti Sains Malaysia, School of Medical Sciences, Department of Immunology, 16150 Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia.
Malays J Pathol. 2019 Aug;41(2):169-176.
Regulatory T cell (Treg) is a subtype of T lymphocyte that plays a crucial role in establishing immunologic self-tolerance and maintaining immune homeostasis. In this study, we set out to investigate the percentage and absolute count of Tregs in major depressive disorder (MDD) patients and their correlation with disease severity.
MATERIALS & METHODS: This is a case-control study consisting of 47 MDD patients and 47 healthy controls. MDD patients were treated with antidepressant drugs according to their physician's choice. The severity of MDD was assessed using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) at the time of recruitment. Healthy controls completed the Depression Anxiety Scoring System (DASS21) questionnaire to ensure they were in good mental health without history of MDD. The percentage and absolute count of CD4 CD25 Tregs and CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Tregs were identified by multiparameter flow cytometry.
The percentage and absolute count of CD4 CD25 Treg cells were significantly higher in MDD patients than in healthy controls (P<0.001, in both cases). Likewise, the percentage and absolute count of CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Treg cells were also significantly higher in MDD patients compared to healthy controls (P=0.003 and P=0.002, respectively). However, there was no significant correlation between the percentage and absolute count of CD4 CD25 Treg and CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Treg cells with BDI or MADRS score.
Our results suggest that antidepressant treatments contributed to an upregulation of Tregs in MDD patients.
调节性T细胞（Treg）是T淋巴细胞的一个亚型，在建立免疫自身耐受性和维持免疫稳态方面发挥着关键作用。在本研究中，我们着手调查重度抑郁症（MDD）患者中Tregs的百分比和绝对计数及其与疾病严重程度的相关性。
这是一项病例对照研究，包括47例MDD患者和47名健康对照。MDD患者根据医生的选择接受抗抑郁药物治疗。在招募时，使用贝克抑郁量表（BDI）和蒙哥马利-阿斯伯格抑郁评定量表（MADRS）评估MDD的严重程度。健康对照完成抑郁焦虑评分系统（DASS21）问卷，以确保他们心理健康且无MDD病史。通过多参数流式细胞术确定CD4 CD25 Tregs和CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Tregs的百分比和绝对计数。
MDD患者中CD4 CD25 Treg细胞的百分比和绝对计数显著高于健康对照（两种情况均P<0.001）。同样，与健康对照相比，MDD患者中CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Treg细胞的百分比和绝对计数也显著更高（分别为P=0.003和P=0.002）。然而，CD4 CD25 Treg和CD4 CD25 FOXP3 Treg细胞的百分比和绝对计数与BDI或MADRS评分之间无显著相关性。
我们的结果表明，抗抑郁治疗导致MDD患者中Tregs上调。
