Association of Circulating Follicular Helper T Cells With Disease Course of NMO Spectrum Disorders

Department

neurology

Document Type

Article

Abstract

While follicular helper T (Tfh) cells have been shown to be involved in many autoimmune diseases, the association of Tfh cells with the disease activity of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSDs) remains unclear. In this study, the CD4 + CXCR5 + PD-1 + Tfh cell population in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) obtained from NMOSD patients, age- and gender-matched healthy controls, and multiple sclerosis patients was compared by flow cytometry. The serum levels of IL-21, IL-6, IL-17, TNF-α and IL-10 were analyzed by ELISA assays. We found that in NMOSD, the Tfh cell frequency is higher than that of healthy subjects and multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. There are more Tfh cells in the relapsing stage than the remitting stage of NMOSD, thus demonstrating the close association of the Tfh cell population with disease activity. Methylprednisolone, which is used to control disease relapses, significantly decreased the proportion of Tfh cells in NMOSD patients.

Medical Subject Headings

neurology

Publication Date

2015

Publication Title

Journal of Neuroimmunology

ISSN

0165-5728

Volume

278

First Page

239

Last Page

246

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1016/j.jneuroim.2014.11.011

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