title: Selective loss of regulatory T cells in thymomas.
abstract: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is the prime autoimmune manifestation of thymomas. We investigated the generation of T cells with a regulatory phenotype (T(R)) in thymomas with and without associated MG. In patients with MG(+) thymomas, maturation and export of T(R) cells but not of other T-cell subsets was significantly reduced. We conclude that imbalance between effector and regulatory T cells in thymomas may be involved in modulation of onset and/or severity of MG.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Pathology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany. philipp.stroebel@mail.uni-wuerzberg.de
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ströbel
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rosenwald
authors.forename: Niklas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Beyersdorf
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kerkau
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Elert
authors.forename: Astrid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Murumägi
authors.forename: Niko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sillanpää
authors.forename: Pärt
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Vera
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Hummel
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rieckmann
authors.forename: Christof
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Burek
authors.forename: Berthold
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schalke
authors.forename: Wilfred
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Nix
authors.forename: Reinhard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kiefer
authors.forename: Hans Konrad
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Müller-Hermelink
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marx
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016923:Cell Death / Q000276:immunology; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000276:immunology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D017637:Clonal Deletion; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D013945:Thymoma / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D013953:Thymus Neoplasms / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*