title: Th17/Treg Imbalance Induced by Dietary Salt Variation Indicates Inflammation of Target Organs in Humans.
abstract: The functions of T helper 17 (Th17) and regulatory T (Treg) cells are tightly orchestrated through independent differentiation pathways that are involved in the secretion of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines induced by high-salt dietary. However, the role of imbalanced Th17/Treg ratio implicated in inflammation and target organ damage remains elusive. Here, by flow cytometry analysis, we demonstrated that switching to a high-salt diet resulted in decreased Th17 cells and reciprocally increased Treg cells, leading to a decreased Th17/Treg ratio. Meanwhile, Th17-related pathway was down-regulated after one day of high salt loading, with the increase in high salt loading as shown by microarray and RT-PCR. Subsequently, blood oxygen level-dependent magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD-MRI) observed hypoxia in the renal medulla (increased R2(*) signal) during high-salt loading, which was regressed to its baseline level in a step-down fashion during low-salt feeding. The flow-mediated vasodilatation (FMD) of the branchial artery was significantly higher on the first day of high salt loading. Collectively, these observations indicate that a short-term increase in dietary salt intake could induce reciprocal switches in Th17/Treg ratio and related cytokines, which might be the underlying cellular mechanism of high-salt dietary induced end organ inflammation and potential atherosclerotic risk.
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.|Department of Cardiology, No. 254 Hospital of PLA, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wen-Jie
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: MRI Department, Pingjin Hospital, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zhao-Zeng
authors.initials: ZZ
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yun-Xiao
authors.initials: YX
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yong-Qiang
authors.initials: YQ
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Remodeling and Target Organ Injury, Pingjin Hospital Heart Center, Tianjin, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yu-Ming
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology; D016175:B-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D001916:Brachial Artery / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D015687:Cell Hypoxia / Q000187:drug effects; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D004231:Diuresis / Q000187:drug effects; D063990:Gene Ontology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D007679:Kidney Medulla / Q000098:blood supply / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009928:Organ Specificity; D017673:Sodium Chloride, Dietary / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D058504:Th17 Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D059467:Transcriptome; D014664:Vasodilation / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D017673:Sodium Chloride, Dietary