Immune and inflammatory gene expressions are different in Behçet's disease compared to those in Familial Mediterranean Fever.
OBJECTIVE
The immune classification of Behçet's disease (BD) is still controversial. In this study, we aimed to compare the immune/inflammatory gene expressions in BD with those in familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), an autoinflammatory disorder with innate immune activation.


METHODS
CD4+ T cells and CD14+ monocytes were isolated from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of Behçet's disease patients (n=10), FMF (n=6) patients, and healthy controls (n=4) with microbeads, and then, the mRNA was isolated. The expressions of 440 genes associated with immune and inflammatory responses were studied with a focused DNA microarray using a chemiluminescent tagging system. Changes above 1.5-fold and below 0.8-fold were accepted to be significant.


RESULTS
In BD patients, in the CD4+ T-lymphocyte subset, interleukin 18 receptor accessory protein (1.7-fold), IL-7 receptor (1.9-fold), and prokineticin 2 (2.5-fold) were all increased compared to those in FMF patients, whereas chemokine (C-X3-C motif ) receptor-1 (CX3CR1) (0.7-fold) and endothelial cell growth factor-1 (0.6-fold) were decreased. In the CD14+ monocyte population, the V-fos FBJ murine osteosarcoma viral oncogene homolog (1.5-fold), Interleukin-8 (IL-8) (2.1-fold), and Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-α) (1.8-fold) were all increased, whereas the chemokine (C-C motif ) ligand 5 (CCL5) (0.6-fold), C-C chemokine receptor type 7 (0.6-fold), and CX3CR1 (0.7-fold) were decreased, again when compared to those in FMF. Compared to healthy controls in the CD4+ T-lymphocyte population, in both BD and FMF patients, pro-platelet basic protein and CD27 had elevated expression. In BD and FMF patients, 24 and 19 genes, respectively, were downregulated, with 15 overlapping genes between both disorders. In the CD14+ monocytes population, chemokine (C-C motif ) receptor-1 (CCR1) was upregulated both in BD and FMF patients compared to that in the controls, whereas CCL5 was downregulated.


CONCLUSIONS
Immune and inflammatory gene expressions seem to be variable in both the innate (CD14+) and adaptive (CD4+) immune responses in BD and FMF patients compared to those in controls, suggesting differences in immune regulation between the two disorders.
Department of Immunology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
Filiz Türe
FT
Özdemir
Department of Immunology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey; Department of Immunology, Memorial Şişli Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey.
Emel Ekşioğlu
EE
Demiralp
Department of Rheumatology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey; Department of Rheumatology, Ottawa University School of Medicine, Ottawa, Canada.
Sibel Z
SZ
Aydın
Department of Rheumatology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
Pamir
P
Atagündüz
Department of Dermatology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
Tülin
T
Ergun
Department of Rheumatology, Marmara University School of Medicine, İstanbul, Turkey.
Haner
H
Direskeneli
Behçet’s disease; familial Mediterranean fever; gene expression