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MR Vol.13 No.2 indexに戻る
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MODERN RHEUMATOLOGY
Vol.13 No.2 |
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The expression of chemokine receptor CXCR3: relevance
to disease activity of rheumatoid arthritis |
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| Yumi Motoki1, Kenji Tani1, Teruki Shimizu1,
Hiroyuki Tamiya1, Kayoko Hase1, Yasukazu Ohmoto , Kouji Matsushima
, Saburo Sone1 |
| （1） Third Department of Internal Medicine,
School of Medicine, Tokushima University, 3-18-15 Kuramoto-cho, Tokushima
770-8503, Japan |
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| Abstract |
| CXC chemokine receptor 3 (CXCR3) is selectively
expressed on T helper 1 (Th1) type T cells and has been shown to
be responsible for Th1-dominant immune responses. In this study,
we analyzed the expression of CXCR3 on peripheral blood T lymphocytes
of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) by FACS analysis using
antihuman CXCR3 monoclonal antibody and determined the clinical
relevance in this disease. Significantly higher expression of CXCR3
was found on peripheral blood CD4+ T lymphocytes of RA
patients than healthy controls. The CXCR3 expression in RA patients
with a high erythrocyte sedimentation rate was significantly higher
than in those with a low erythrocyte sedimentation rate. Moreover,
we found that the CXCR3 expression in RA patients with long-term
disease duration was significantly higher than in those with short-term
disease. On the other hand, CC chemokine receptor 4 (CCR4), which
was shown to be selectively expressed on Th2-type T cells, was
expressed at low levels in RA patients as well as in healthy controls.
The serum level of interleukin (IL)-18 in RA patients was higher
than that in healthy controls, although there was no statistically
significant difference. This study suggests that the Th1 immune
response is predominant in RA and that CXCR3 may have relevance
in regard to the disease course in RA patients. |
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