title: Intracellular production of IL-2, IL-4, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha by peripheral blood CD3+ and CD4+ T cells in children with atopic dermatitis.
abstract: The role of the type-2 T helper (Th2) cell-mediated immune response in the immunopathogenesis of atopic dermatitis (AD) is well documented. Whether polarized immunoresponse is confined to antigen-specific T cells or is distributed among all T cell subsets is still controversial. We investigated frequencies of interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-4, interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) producing CD3(+) and CD4(+) T cells in peripheral blood from children with atopic dermatitis and healthy subjects with and without in vitro stimulation. Children with severe AD had a significantly lower percentage of CD4(+) T cells spontaneously expressing IL-4 compared with healthy controls (p <0.01). Polyclonal stimulation significantly increased cytokine production in both AD patients and healthy individuals. Frequencies of CD3(+) and CD4(+) producing IL-2, IL-4, IFN-gamma, and TNF-alpha after in vitro stimulation with phorbol-12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) + ionomycin were comparable in the AD and control groups. In response to PMA/ionomycin, children with AD and asthma symptoms had a significantly lower percentage of CD3(+) T cells producing TNF-alpha. We failed to demonstrate evidence of an imbalance with respect to type-2 cytokine productions in children with AD. Comparable induction of Th1 and Th2 cytokines in polyclonally stimulated peripheral CD3(+) and CD4(+)T cells from AD patients and controls puts into question the polarized Th2 immune response as a general characteristic of T cells in children with atopic dermatitis.
authors.affiliation: Chair and Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Allergology and Developmental Disorders, Medical University of Silesia, Zabrze, Poland.
authors.forename: Edyta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Machura
authors.forename: Bogdan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mazur
authors.forename: Jarosław
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kwiecień
authors.forename: Krystyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Karczewska
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D017252:CD3 Complex / Q000032:analysis; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism*; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D015759:Ionomycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D010703:Phorbol Esters / Q000494:pharmacology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D017252:CD3 Complex; D016207:Cytokines; D010703:Phorbol Esters; C119222:phorbol-12-myristate; D015759:Ionomycin