ABSTRACT
Purpose: To characterize peripheral blood T cells in juvenile idiopathic arthritis-associated uveitis (JIAU).
Methods: Blood samples were taken from children with JIAU (n = 18), JIA without ocular involvement (n = 11), idiopathic anterior uveitis (IAU, n = 12), and healthy controls (n = 11). Cells were stained for T cell surface markers, and intracellular cytokine staining was performed after cell stimulation and analyzed by flow cytometry.
Results: The Th1/Th2 ratio was increased in JIAU patients. Numbers of IL-13-expressing cells an level of IL-13 and IL-10 expression per cell were increased in all patient groups; whereas, percentages of IL-5-expressing T cells were decreased. Numbers of proinflammatory Th17 cells and T cells expressing CTLA-4 were increased in all patient groups; whereas, γ/δ T cell numbers were decreased. Results from JIA and IAU were similar.
Conclusion: T cell subtypes and potential T cell function are altered in pediatric patients with uveitis and arthritis as compared to healthy children.
Declaration of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
Supplementary material
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