Imbalances in T Cell-Related Transcription Factors Among Patients with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis
Journal Title: Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal - Year 2017, Vol 17, Issue 2
Abstract
Objectives: Imbalances in effector T cell functioning have been associated with a number of autoimmune diseases, including Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT). Differentiation of effector T helper (T) 1, T2, T17 and regulatory T cell (Treg) lymphocytes is regulated by transcription factors, including T1-specifc T box (T-bet), GATA binding protein-3 (GATA3), retinoid-related orphan receptor (ROR)-α and forkhead box P3 (FOXP3). Tis study aimed to investigate T1/T2, T1/Treg, T2/Treg and T17/Treg balances at the level of these transcription factors. Methods: Tis study took place between October 2015 and August 2016. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were collected from a control group of 40 healthy women recruited from the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran, and a patient group of 40 women with HT referred to the Hazrat Ali Asghar Hospital, Zahedan. Total ribonucleic acid extraction was performed and the gene expression of transcription factors was quantitated using a real-time polymerase chain reaction technique. Results: Expression of T-bet and GATA3 was signifcantly elevated, while FOXP3 expression was signifcantly diminished among HT patients in comparison with the controls (P = 0.03, 0.01 and 0.05, respectively). Expression of RORα was higher among HT patients, although this difference was not signifcant (P = 0.15). Expression of T-bet/FOXP3, GATA3/FOXP3 and RORα/FOXP3 ratios were increased among HT patients in comparison with the controls (P <0.02, <0.01 and <0.01, respectively). Conclusion: Tese results indicate that HT patients have imbalances in T1/Treg, T2/Treg and T17/Treg lymphocytes at the level of the transcription factors, deviating towards T1, T2 and T17 cells. Correction of these imbalances may therefore be therapeutic.
Authors and Affiliations
Vahid Safdari| Physiology Research Center, Institute of Neuropharmacology and Department of Laboratory Sciences, School of Para-Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran, Ebrahim Alijani| Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran, Maryam Nemati| Department of Laboratory Sciences, School of Para-Medicine, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran, Abdollah Jafarzadeh| Molecular Medicine Research Center and Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Rafsanjan University of Medical Sciences, Rafsanjan, Iran
Keywords
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- EP ID EP14770
- DOI 10.18295/squmj.2016.17.02.007
- Views 317
- Downloads 22
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