Haemochromatosis as a window into the study of the immunological system: a novel correlation between CD8+ lymphocytes and iron overload

• Published in: European journal of haematology Vol. 52; no. 5; p. 283
• Main Authors: Porto, G, Reimão, R, Gonçalves, C, Vicente, C, Justiça, B, de Sousa, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.05.1994
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Bloodletting; CD4-CD8 Ratio; Female; Hemochromatosis - immunology; Hemochromatosis - metabolism; Humans; Leukocyte Count; Male; Middle Aged; T-Lymphocytes - immunology; Time Factors; Transferrin - metabolism
• ISSN: 0902-4441
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0609.1994.tb00097.x

In the present study we report a serial investigation of the numbers of the peripheral blood cells--erythrocytes, polymorphonuclear neutrophils, total lymphocytes, T-lymphocyte subpopulations (CD2, CD4, CD8), B lymphocytes and monocytes--in a group of 21 patients with haemochromatosis during the time of intensive phlebotomy treatment, i.e., from iron overload until the onset of iron deficiency. A remarkable individual stability of all blood cell populations studied was found in all patients. Patients differed in their relative proportions of CD4+ and CD8+. Each individual's CD4/CD8 ratio, as well as the absolute numbers, remained unaffected with time, confirming the existence of a strict homeostatic regulation of the relative numbers of the two major peripheral T lymphocytes. A significant positive correlation between CD4/CD8 ratios and the amount of iron mobilised by phlebotomy was found during this study. A novel correlation between the relative proportions of CD4+ and CD8+ cells and iron overload is confirmed by the follow-up of iron re-entry in the serum transferrin pool in the treated patients.