title: Regulatory T cell frequencies are increased in preterm infants with clinical early-onset sepsis.
abstract: The predisposition of preterm neonates to invasive infection is, as yet, incompletely understood. Regulatory T cells (Tregs ) are potential candidates for the ontogenetic control of immune activation and tissue damage in preterm infants. It was the aim of our study to characterize lymphocyte subsets and in particular CD4(+) CD25(+) forkhead box protein 3 (FoxP3)(+) Tregs in peripheral blood of well-phenotyped preterm infants (n = 117; 23 + 0 - 36 + 6 weeks of gestational age) in the first 3 days of life in comparison to term infants and adults. We demonstrated a negative correlation of Treg frequencies and gestational age. Tregs were increased in blood samples of preterm infants compared to term infants and adults. Notably, we found an increased Treg frequency in preterm infants with clinical early-onset sepsis while cause of preterm delivery, e.g. chorioamnionitis, did not affect Treg frequencies. Our data suggest that Tregs apparently play an important role in maintaining maternal-fetal tolerance, which turns into an increased sepsis risk after preterm delivery. Functional analyses are needed in order to elucidate whether Tregs have potential as future target for diagnostics and therapeutics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.|Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, University of Lübeck.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pagel
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.|Institute for Systemic Inflammation Research, University of Lübeck, Lübeck.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hartz
authors.affiliation: Institute for Systemic Inflammation Research, University of Lübeck, Lübeck.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Figge
authors.affiliation: Department of Neonatology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gille
authors.affiliation: Institute for Systemic Inflammation Research, University of Lübeck, Lübeck.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eschweiler
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Petersen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.|Institute for Systemic Inflammation Research, University of Lübeck, Lübeck.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schreiter
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hammer
authors.affiliation: Institute for Systemic Inflammation Research, University of Lübeck, Lübeck.
authors.forename: C M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Karsten
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, University of Lübeck.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Friedrich
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Herting
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Göpel
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology, University of Lübeck.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rupp
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Clinic Schleswig Holstein, Campus Lübeck.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Härtel
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000650:Amnion / Q000382:microbiology; D002821:Chorioamnionitis / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000097:blood; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature / Q000276:immunology*; D007235:Infant, Premature, Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D011247:Pregnancy; D018805:Sepsis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: C418974:FOXP3 protein, human; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors
keywords: FoxP3; amniotic infection; early-onset sepsis; preterm infants; regulatory T cells