A circulating reservoir of pathogenic-like CD4+ T cells shares a genetic and phenotypic signature with the inflamed synovial micro-environment.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Systemic immunological processes are profoundly shaped by the micro-environments where antigen recognition occurs. Identifying molecular signatures distinctive of such processes is pivotal to understand pathogenic immune responses and manipulate them for therapeutic purposes. Unfortunately, direct investigation of peripheral tissues, enriched in pathogenic T cells, is often impossible or imposingly invasive in humans. Conversely, blood is easily accessible, but pathogenic signatures are diluted systemically as a result of the strict compartmentalisation of immune responses. In this work, we aimed at defining immune mediators shared between the bloodstream and the synovial micro-environment, and relevant for disease activity in autoimmune arthritis.

Methods

CD4(+)

SUBMITTER: Spreafico R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4752664 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature