Abnormalities of immunoregulation in progressive systemic sclerosis. Evidence for excess helper-cell function and altered B-cell function.
We investigated immunoregulatory function in patients with progressive systemic sclerosis (PSS) in terms of in vitro IgM synthesis. Suppressor-cell function seems normal in regard to the ability of concanavalin A-treated cells to inhibit IgM synthesis by normal cells. At 4 x 10(5) T cells to 3 x 10(5) allogeneic normal B cells per milliliter, T cells from patients with PSS induce significantly more IgM synthesis by normal B cells than do normal T cells. This increased helper T-cell function might be involved in the pathogenesis of the disease.
D000328:Adult; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000096:biosynthesis; D008297:Male; D012595:Scleroderma, Systemic / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology
D007075:Immunoglobulin M