title: Increased prevalence of IL-17-producing peripheral blood lymphocytes in pre-eclampsia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Systemic inflammation is a dominant component in the pathogenesis of pre-eclampsia. Besides the imbalance of Th1 and Th2 cells, alterations of the prevalence of Th17 and regulatory T cells have also been suggested to contribute to inflammation. We aimed to describe the prevalence of these four CD4 lymphocyte subtypes in pre-eclampsia and normal pregnancy, along with that of IL-17-producing CD8 and NK cells.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty pre-eclamptic and 22 normal pregnant women were enrolled in this study. Using flow cytometry, we determined the prevalence of IL-17-producing cells among the CD4, CD8 and NK cell subsets. Furthermore, we measured the prevalence of CD4+ Tregs, and Th1/Th2 cells were characterized using cell surface chemokine receptor markers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We demonstrated that there is a shift not only in the Th1/Th2 but also in the Th17/Treg balance favouring skewness towards a pro-inflammatory status in pre-eclampsia. The proportion of CD8 and NK cells that express IL-17 was also higher in pre-eclampsia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of IL-17-producing CD4, CD8 and NK cells is elevated in pre-eclampsia, indicating that both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system are involved in the development of the exaggerated maternal systemic inflammation observed in this pregnancy-specific disorder.
authors.affiliation: First Department of Pediatrics, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
authors.forename: Gergely
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Toldi
authors.forename: János
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rigó
authors.forename: Balázs
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stenczer
authors.forename: Barna
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vásárhelyi
authors.forename: Attila
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Molvarec
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018925:Chemokines / Q000096:biosynthesis; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D015995:Prevalence; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D058504:Th17 Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D018925:Chemokines; D020381:Interleukin-17