title: [Quantity and function of T follicular helper cells in the bone marrow of patients with immune thrombocytopenia].
abstract: This study was purposed to detect the quantity and function of bone marrow (BM) T follicular helper (Tfh) cells of patients with immune thrombocytopenia, and to explore the role of Tfh cells in the pathogenesis of ITP. Twenty-one newly diagnosed ITP patients, twenty ITP patients in recovery stage and eighteen normal controls were enrolled in this study. The percentages of Tfh cells, Tfh-related molecules ICOS, CD40L, IL-21 in BM were detected by flow cytometry (FCM), and the mRNA expression of BCL-6 in BMMNC was determined by semi-quantitive RT-PCR. Correlation of Tfh cell level with the disease severity of ITP patients was analysed. The results showed that the ratio of CD4(+)CXCR5(+)/CD4(+) cells in newly diagnosed ITP patients [(5.532 ± 2.599)%] was significantly higher than that in ITP patients with recovery stage [(4.064 ± 2.026)%] and controls [(4.048 ± 1.413)%] (P < 0.05). The ratio of CD4(+)CXCR5(+)ICOS(+)/CD4(+) CXCR5(+) cells in newly diagnosed ITP patients [(14.586 ± 8.561)%] was higher than that in recovery stage ITP patients [(12.884 ± 10.161)%] and controls [(7.487 ± 5.176)%]. The differences be-tween newly diagnosed ITP patients and controls were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The ratio of CD4(+)CXCR5(+) CD40L(+)/CD4(+) CXCR5(+) cells in newly diagnosed ITP patients [(15.309 ± 10.756)%] and in ITP patients with recovery stage [(18.242 ± 12.243)%] were significantly higher than that in controls [(8.618 ± 5.719) %] (P < 0.05). The ratio of intracytoplasm CD4(+) CXCR5(+) IL-21(+)/CD4(+)CXCR5(+) cells in newly diagnosed ITP patients [(58.560 ± 26.285)%] and in ITP patients with recovery stage [(57.035 ± 30.936)%] were significantly higher than that in controls [(36.289 ± 24.868)%] (P < 0.05). The relative expression levels of BCL-6 mRNA in BMMNC of three groups were (1.407 ± 0.264), (1.149 ± 0.217) and (0.846 ± 0.157), respectively. The differences between 3 groups were significant(P < 0.05). It is concluded that the quantity and function of Tfh cells in ITP patients increase, which may play an important role in the pathogenesis of ITP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China. E-mail: quwentj923@sina.com.
authors.forename: Wen
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Qu
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Er-Bao
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Ruan
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Rong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Guo-Jin
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Ming
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Yu-Hong
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Jia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Li-Min
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guan
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Li-Juan
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China.
authors.forename: Hua-Quan
authors.initials: HQ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin 300052, China. E-mail: shaozonghong@sina.com.
authors.forename: Zong-Hong
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Shao
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000276:immunology; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology*; D013921:Thrombocytopenia / Q000276:immunology*; D055815:Young Adult