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- Title
BTLA Expression on Th1, Th2 and Th17 Effector T-Cells of Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Is Associated with Active Disease.
- Authors
Oster, Christoph; Wilde, Benjamin; Specker, Christof; Sun, Ming; Kribben, Andreas; Witzke, Oliver; Dolff, Sebastian
- Abstract
An imbalanced T-cell homeostasis plays an important role in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory molecules regulate T-cell differentiation, survival, and cytokine production. B- and T-lymphocyte attenuator (BTLA) is a co-inhibitory molecule which negatively regulates T-cell activation. The aim of this study was to investigate BTLA expression on regulatory and effector CD4+ T-cells in SLE patients with and without lupus nephritis (LN) during active and inactive disease. Therefore, peripheral blood of forty-one SLE patients and twenty-one healthy controls (HC) was phenotypically analyzed. Next, ex vivo stimulated T-cells were analyzed for the expression of BTLA on Th1-, Th2-, and Th17-effector cells by flow cytometry. Renal involvement was defined as biopsy-proven LN. Disease activity was assessed by SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI). Percentages of peripheral unstimulated BTLA+ CD4+ T-cells were significantly decreased in SLE patients with active disease. However, ex vivo stimulated Th1, Th2, and Th17 effector T-cells, expressed increased percentages of BTLA expression in active disease. In contrast, the BTLA expression on CD4+CD25++CD127− regulatory T-cells was not significantly different. BTLA seems to be an important co-inhibitory molecule in the T-cell homeostasis of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus and crucial for disease activity.
- Subjects
SYSTEMIC lupus erythematosus; T cells; INTERLEUKIN-7; LUPUS nephritis
- Publication
International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2019, Vol 20, Issue 18, p4505
- ISSN
1661-6596
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/ijms20184505