Circulating TCR γδ Cells in the Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a disorder with a wide range of immunological abnormalities. The results of the studies undertaken in the last decade indicated that SLE pathogenesis was mainly connected with the breakdown of the activation control of B and T cells, generating humoral or cell-mediated responses against several self-antigens of affected cells. The last studies demonstrate that the role of γδ T lymphocytes in autoimmune diseases can be especially important. Flow cytometry techniques were used to investigate the number and percentage of TCR γδ T cells and their most frequent subtypes in peripheral blood of 32 patients with SLE and 16 healthy volunteers. We also correlated TCR γδ cells number with the level of T CD3+, T CD4+, T CD8+, and NK (CD16) cells (cytometric measurements) and SLE activity (on the basis of clinical investigations). Our studies were preliminary attempts to evaluate the role of that minor T cell subpopulation in SLE. Absolute numbers of cells expressing γδ TCR in most SLE blood specimens were significantly lower than in the control group (P