title: IL-4-producing CD8(+) T cells may be an immunological hallmark of chronic GVHD.
abstract: Chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) occurs in approximately 60-80% of those who survive over 100 days after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). However, the pathophysiology of cGVHD is poorly understood. To gain more insight into the immunological mechanism of cGVHD, we examine cytokine production of peripheral blood T cells from 19 patients in the chronic phase of allo-HSCT. The percentage of IFN-gamma-producing CD8(+) T cells among CD8(+) T cells was significantly higher in patients with or without cGVHD than in normal control subjects (P<0.001). On the other hand, the percentage of IL-4-producing CD8(+) T cells among CD8(+) T cells was significantly higher in patients with cGVHD (mean 3.3%; range 1.3-8.2%) than in patients without cGVHD (mean 1.2%; range 0.8-1.7%) and normal control subjects (mean 1.1%; range 0.1-1.6%) (both P<0.001). By contrast, the percentage of IL-4-producing CD4(+) T cells was not different among patients with and without cGVHD and normal controls. These findings suggest that IL-4-producing CD8(+) T cells may be an immunological marker of cGVHD.
authors.affiliation: 1st Department of Internal Medicine, Kansai Medical University, Moriguchi, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Amakawa
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takebayashi
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Son
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Miyaji
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tajima
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakai
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zen
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kishimoto
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukuhara
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002908:Chronic Disease; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006086:Graft vs Host Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012008:Recurrence; D013997:Time Factors; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D015847:Interleukin-4; D007371:Interferon-gamma