No abstract

SUMMARYPsoriasis is a chronic, inflammatory, hyperproliferative skin disease, in which autoimmunity plays a great role. Natural killer T cells (NK T cells), are suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of different autoimmune diseases. To examine the involvement of CD3 + CD56 + NK T cells in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, we investigated the lymphocyte subpopulations obtained from blood samples of psoriatic patients before and after treatment, and of healthy controls, using two-colour flow cytometry. We found no significant differences between total T cells, total B cells, T helper cells, T cytotoxic cells and NK cells in patients with psoriasis before and after treatment and in controls. Increased percentage of memory T cells and decreased percentage of naive T cells was detected in psoriatic patients compared to controls, but these changes were not statistically significant. The CD3 + CD56 + cells of psoriatic patients were significantly decreased relative to controls. The percentage of CD3 + CD56 + cells increased after different antipsoriatic therapies, but remained significantly lower than those found in controls. CD3 + CD56 + cells of healthy controls were capable of rapid activation, while in psoriatic patients activated NK T cells were almost absent. The decrease in the number of CD3 + CD56 + cells may represent an intrinsic characteristic feature of patients with psoriasis, which is supported by the fact that after treatment NK T cells do not reach the values found in controls. In conclusion our results suggest that CD3 + CD56 + NK T cells could be actively involved in the development of Th1 mediated autoimmune diseases.

Natural killer cell cytotoxicity is deficient in both neonatal sepsis and recurrent infections.

Since the interleukin-10 receptor expression of keratinocytes in psoriatic lesional skin is downregulated, the dithranol induced upregulation of the receptor in our model system might help to reveal the therapeutic action of the drug.

Cytotrophoblast cells produce interleukin (IL)-10 and express IL-10 receptor mRNA in culture. Furthermore, IL-10 dramatically reduces the synthesis of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 and the invasivity of cytotrophoblast cells in vitro, suggesting that an autocrine regulatory role in vivo is also possible. To test this hypothesis we investigated the expression of IL-10 receptor protein by first trimester cytotrophoblasts both in vitro and in situ, using flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry. Flow cytometric analyses demonstrated that 75-80% of cytotrophoblasts are able to bind labelled IL-10, suggesting that these cells possess IL-10 receptors in vitro. Serial sections of early human placentae stained for either alpha(5) and alpha(6) integrin subunits, or for IL-10 receptors respectively, revealed that placental cytotrophoblasts possess cell surface IL-10 receptors not only in vitro, but also in vivo. IL-10 receptors were present mainly on alpha(6) integrin expressing villous cytotrophoblast cells and on alpha(6)-positive cells of invasive cell columns located nearest the villous stroma. Differentiated trophoblasts (i.e. alpha(5)-positive cells and villous syncytiotrophoblasts) showed no reactivity. This differential expression of IL-10 receptors suggests that IL-10 might suppress the invasivity of undifferentiated cytotrophoblast cells, in vivo, preserving their non-invasive state in an autocrine manner. The possible involvement in cytotrophoblast proliferation and/or differentiation is also discussed.