The role of T lymphocytes in autoimmune thyroid disease.

Abnormalities in cellular mechanisms of immunoregulation are important factors in the initiation and/or propagation of autoimmune thyroid disease and Graves' ophthalmopathy. The primary immunologic lesion, however, remains elusive despite increasingly sophisticated investigations in the areas of antigen presentation and subsequent T-cell responses. Emphasis on functional evaluations of relevant cell populations and advances in lymphokine analysis, interpretation of DR antigen expression, and T-cell cloning offer promise for our future understanding of this complex process.