Vol.23 No.1

Original Article

HTLV-I virological and histopathological analysis in two cases of anti-centromere-antibody-seropositive Sjögren’s syndrome

Authors

Hideki Nakamura1 , Yoshiro Horai1 , Ayuko Tokuyama1 , Shunsuke Yoshimura2 , Hideki Nakajima2 , Kunihiro Ichinose1 , Satoshi Yamasaki1 , Tatsufumi Nakamura3 , Tomayoshi Hayashi4 , Atsushi Kawakami1

  • Unit of Translational Medicine, Department of Immunology and Rheumatology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki, Nagasaki, 852-8501, Japan
  • Unit of Translational Medicine, Department of Neurology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan
  • Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan
  • Department of Pathology, Nagasaki University Hospital, Nagasaki, Japan
Received:

27 January 2012

Accepted:

22 March 2012

Published online:

18 April 2012

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Abstract

Introduction The aim of this study was to show the clinical and pathological characteristics of anti-centromereantibody (ACA)-seropositive Sjögren’s syndrome (SS) in two anti-human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I)-seropositive patients.
Methods One patient was an HTLV-I carrier whereas the other was diagnosed with HTLV-I-associated myelopathy (HAM). Background data including serum HTLV-I titers, viral loads, and cytokine profiles were recorded. Azocarmine with aniline blue (Azan)-Mallory staining and immunohistochemistry of the labial salivary glands (LSGs) and a muscle biopsy specimen from the HAM patient were performed.
Results Serum transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and HTLV-I viral load were high in the HAM-SS patient compared with the HTLV-I carrier. Fibrous change in LSG was prominent in the HAM-SS patient. Although TGF-β expression was similar in the two patients, expression of HTLV-I-related proteins including p12, p28, group-specific antigen (GAG), and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-jB) in the LSG were dominantly detected in the HAM-SS patient. Frequency of TGF-β staining in HTLV-I-seropositive SS patients without ACA, HTLV-I-seronegative SS patients with ACA, and HTLV-I-seronegative SS patients without ACA was lower than that of the previous two patients.
Conclusion A high HTLV-I viral load in situ is supposed to promote the production of cytokines, especially TGF-β, resulting in the fibrous change of LSG in ACA-seropositive SS patients.

Key words

HTLV-I infection - Anti-centromere antibody - Sjögren’s syndrome - Cytokine