Frequency of Th17 CD20+ cells in the peripheral blood of rheumatoid arthritis patients is higher compared to healthy subjects

• Published in: Arthritis research & therapy Vol. 13; no. 6; p. R208
• Main Authors: Eggleton, Paul, Bremer, Edwin, Tarr, Joanna M, de Bruyn, Marco, Helfrich, Wijnand, Kendall, Alexandra, Haigh, Richard C, Viner, Nick J, Winyard, Paul G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 01.01.2011; BioMed Central
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antigens, CD20 - immunology; Antigens, CD20 - metabolism; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - blood; Arthritis, Rheumatoid - immunology; B-Lymphocytes - immunology; B-Lymphocytes - metabolism; CD3 Complex - immunology; CD3 Complex - metabolism; Flow Cytometry; Humans; Immunophenotyping; Interleukin-17 - immunology; Interleukin-17 - metabolism; Leukocytes, Mononuclear - immunology; Leukocytes, Mononuclear - metabolism; Lymphocyte Count; Microscopy, Confocal; Middle Aged; T-Lymphocytes - immunology; T-Lymphocytes - metabolism; Th17 Cells - immunology; Th17 Cells - metabolism
• ISSN: 1478-6354; 1478-6362; 1478-6354; 1478-6362
• DOI: 10.1186/ar3541

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is considered a T cell driven autoimmune disease, therefore, the ability of B cell depleting biologics, e.g., anti-CD20 antibodies, to alleviate RA is unclear. This study examined the proportions of IL-17-secreting lymphocytes in the blood of healthy subjects and RA patients and determined if Th17 cells belong to a CD20+ subset of T cells. Fluorescence-activated cell sorting and confocal microscopy verified CD3, CD4/CD8 and CD20-staining of T cells. IL-17 secretion was determined using a commercial assay. In healthy subjects and RA patients blood, the median percentage of total CD20+ lymphocytes was similar (7.5%; n = 6 and 10.3%; n = 9, respectively) and comprised predominantly of B cells (~ 86%). However, 2-4% of CD3+ T cells from both healthy subjects (n = 7) and RA (n = 8) individuals co-expressed CD20. The peripheral blood of healthy subjects contained few IL-17-secreting CD20+ T cells (< 0.1%; n = 6). In contrast, in RA blood a median and interquartile range % of, 24.2%; IQR 28.5 of IL-17-secreting T cells were CD20+ (n = 9; p = 0.02). In the blood of RA patients, a greater proportion of Th17 cells are of a CD20+ phenotype compared to healthy individuals. These cells may represent an additional target for anti-CD20 therapies.