Kerakawauchi H, Kurono Y, Mogi G
Department of Otolaryngology, Oita Medical University, Hasama-machi, Japan.
Laryngoscope. 1997 May;107(5):634-9. doi: 10.1097/00005537-199705000-00015.
We investigated cellular immunity against Streptococcus pyogenes in human tonsils by measuring antigen-specific immunoglobulin-secreting cells and the production of cytokines from CD4+ T cells in response to M proteins. The incidence of S pyogenes in tonsils was significantly higher in patients with recurrent tonsillitis (RT) than in patients with tonsillar hypertrophy (TH). M protein-specific immunoglobulin A (IgA) and immunoglobulin G spot-forming cells were increased in patients with RT compared with patients with TH. In RT the number of M protein-specific IgA spot-forming cells was significantly greater in the S pyogenes-negative subjects than in the S pyogenes-positive subjects. Proliferation of CD4+ T cells and production of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and interleukins -2, -4, -5, and -6 (IL-2, IL-4, IL-5, and IL-6) from those T cells were observed in response to M protein. The concentrations of IFN-gamma and IL-4 were higher in RT than in TH. These findings suggest that S pyogenes is associated with the pathogenesis of RT and that immune responses against M protein may play an important role in preventing the colonization of this bacteria in tonsils.
我们通过测量抗原特异性免疫球蛋白分泌细胞以及CD4 + T细胞对M蛋白反应产生的细胞因子，研究了人类扁桃体中针对化脓性链球菌的细胞免疫。复发性扁桃体炎（RT）患者扁桃体中化脓性链球菌的发生率显著高于扁桃体肥大（TH）患者。与TH患者相比，RT患者中M蛋白特异性免疫球蛋白A（IgA）和免疫球蛋白G斑点形成细胞增加。在RT中，化脓性链球菌阴性受试者中M蛋白特异性IgA斑点形成细胞的数量显著多于化脓性链球菌阳性受试者。观察到CD4 + T细胞的增殖以及这些T细胞对M蛋白反应产生的干扰素-γ（IFN-γ）和白细胞介素-2、-4、-5和-6（IL-2、IL-4、IL-5和IL-6）。RT中IFN-γ和IL-4的浓度高于TH。这些发现表明，化脓性链球菌与RT的发病机制有关，并且针对M蛋白的免疫反应可能在预防该细菌在扁桃体中定植方面发挥重要作用。
