Helper (OKT4)/suppressor (OKT8) ratios in the peripheral blood and synovial fluid of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Lymphocyte subsets in the peripheral blood of 10 patients with RA were studied using monoclonal antibodies. The mean percentages of total T, T helper, T suppressor and TAR in the peripheral blood of RA patients were not different from those observed in normal controls. In the synovial fluid the mean percentages of T suppressor cells were present in increased numbers associated with a decreased number of autorosette T cells. We conclude that patients with rheumatoid arthritis present distinct immunoregulatory abnormalities in the synovial fluid not present in the peripheral blood. These changes may be related to the immune abnormalities present and related to the etiology of RA.
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000097:blood / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D012397:Rosette Formation; D013582:Synovial Fluid / Q000166:cytology*; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000145:classification* / Q000473:pathology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000145:classification* / Q000473:pathology
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal