Spontaneous improvement of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis after T lymphocytosis with suppressor phenotype and function.
Spontaneous improvement of active juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) occurred after T lymphocytosis in an 8-year-old boy. He had prominent lymphocytosis, the count reaching 59,000/mm3, followed by spontaneous disappearance of fever, arthralgia, lymphadenopathy, hepatomegaly, and C-reactive protein. The serum immunoglobulin levels were gradually decreased. The surface marker analysis, using two color flow cytometry, showed that the lymphocytes were activated suppressor T lymphocytes, expressing CD3, CD8, HLA-DR, and CD8 plus CD11. When studied in vitro with pokeweed mitogen stimulation, the T lymphocytes significantly suppressed the immunoglobulin production by autologous B lymphocytes as compared with the T lymphocytes at remission (p less than 0.01). Based on the widely believed notion that depression of suppressor T lymphocyte functions is one of the important mechanisms underlying systemic JRA, the activated T lymphocytosis with the suppressor phenotype and suppressive function on the immunoglobulin production may have been related to the improvement of active JRA in the patient.
Ichikawa
M
M
Department of Pediatrics, Shinshu University School of Medicine, Matsumoto, Japan.
Yanagisawa
M
M
Kawai
H
H
Kamijo
T
T
Komiyama
A
A
Akabane
T
T
D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte; D001171:Arthritis, Juvenile / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000096:biosynthesis; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008218:Lymphocytosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male; D010641:Phenotype; D012075:Remission, Spontaneous; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*
D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte; D007136:Immunoglobulins