title: [CD4+CD25high regulatory cells in peripheral blood of nasopharyngeal carcinoma].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The current study was designed to investigate the changes in peripheral CD4+ CD25high regulatory T cells (CD4+ CD25high Tr) in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC).
  
  
  METHODS
  The peripheral was collected blood from 54 patients with NPC and 15 healthy controls, by using monoclonal antibodies, the blood samples were evaluated with the flow cytometry for lymphocyte subsets and Tr cells.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The proportion of CD4+ T cells, and the ratio of CD4+/CD8+ in NPC group was significantly less than those of the healthy controls (P < 0.05), but the proportion of CD4+ CD25high Tr cells was higher than those in controls (P < 0.01). The proportion of CD4+ CD25high Tr cells in the late stage was higher than those in the early stage [(stages I + II (2.28 +/- 1.07) %; stage III (3.65 +/- 1.21) %; stage IV (4.72 +/- 0.87) %)]. Comparing with the stages I + II, the proportion of CD4+ CD25high Tr cells in the stage III or IV was higher than those in controls (P < 0.01); and more, the proportion of CD4+ CD25high Tr cells in the stage IV was higher than those in the stage III (P < 0.01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The relative increase in CD4+ CD25high Tr cells in peripheral blood may be related to immunosuppression and tumor progression in patients with NPC. This finding suggests that CD4+ CD25high Tr cells in peripheral blood of NPC may be positive for prognosis analysis. Deletion of the CD4+ CD25high Tr cells may induce tumor immunity effectively and may be a new tumor treatment method.
authors.affiliation: The Fourth Department, Cancer Center, Union Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430023, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Junxia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.forename: Rubo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shiang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009303:Nasopharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*