title: Effects ofTripterygiumglycosides on interleukin-17 and CD4+CD25+CD127lowregulatory T-cell expression in the peripheral blood of patients with ankylosing spondylitis.
abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the possible mechanisms of action ofTripterygiumglycosides (TG) in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). In total, 20 patients with active AS received treatment with 20 mg TG tablet (TGT) 3 times per day for 6 weeks. In addition, 20 healthy age- and gender-matched individuals were recruited as the control group. The efficacy measures included the Bath AS disease activity index (BASDAI), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. The serum interleukin (IL)-17 levels were measured using ELISA. The expression of CD4+CD25+CD127lowregulatory T cells (Tregs) in the peripheral blood was evaluated by flow cytometry. A bivariate correlation analysis was used to determine the association of IL-17 levels with BASDAI, ESR, CRP and CD4+CD25+CD127lowTregs in AS patients. Prior to treatment, the BASDAI, ESR and CRP levels in AS patients were found to be elevated compared to those in healthy controls and were significantly reduced following TGT treatment (P<0.05, P<0.05 and P<0.05, respectively). Prior to treatment, the AS patients exhibited significantly higher IL-17 levels compared to those in healthy controls (P<0.05). Following TGT treatment, the IL-17 levels were significantly reduced in AS patients (P<0.01) but were not significantly different in the control subjects (P>0.05). In addition, prior to treatment, the ratio of CD4+CD25+CD127lowTregs in AS patients was significantly lower compared to that in healthy controls (P<0.05) and it was significantly increased following TGT treatment (P<0.05). The correlation analysis between the BASDAI, ESR or CRP levels and IL-17 revealed a positive linear correlation (P<0.001, P<0.001 and P<0.01, respectively), whereas CD4+CD25+CD127lowTregs were found to be negatively correlated with IL-17 (P<0.01). In conclusion, TGT is efficient for the treatment of AS patients and its mechanism of action may be correlated with the upregulation of CD4+CD25+CD127lowTregs and the downregulation of IL-17 in the peripheral blood.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatism, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department, Zhuzhou Central Hospital, Zhuzhou, Hunan 412000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Honggang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Clinical Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Clinical Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yajun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatism, The First Affiliated Clinical Medical College of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Lingyu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: Department of Tuberculosis, Nanjing Chest Hospital, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210029, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
keywords: CD4+CD25+CD127low regulatory T cells; Tripterygium glycosides; ankylosing spondylitis; interleukin 17