Role of regulatory T cells in rheumatoid arthritis: facts and hypothesis

Abstract

Regulatory T cells (Treg) are a CD4 + lymphocyte subset involved in self-tolerance and autoimmunity prevention. There is evidence for a phenotypic and/or functional impairment of this cell subset during the natural history of several chronic autoimmune/inflammatory diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Although the intracellular transcription factor FoxP3 is thought to be the master regulator of Treg cell function, a number of other molecules expressed on the cell surface have been proposed for the identification of Treg cells. This is important in order to favour their possible selective isolation and in the development of new therapeutic strategies. In the present paper, available data on phenotypic and functional characterization of Treg cells in both peripheral blood and synovial fluid from RA patients are reviewed and their possible pathogenic role in triggering and perpetuating rheumatoid joint inflammation is discussed.

Synovial membrane mesenchymal stem cells: past life, current situation, and application in bone and joint diseases

“…The imbalance of the proportion of effector cells and regulatory cells caused by the loss of autoimmune tolerance plays an important role in the pathogenesis of RA [67,68]. Studies have shown that SM-MSCs may be involved in the regulation of immune homeostasis in healthy joints, and the failure of this immune regulation is the basis of the development of RA.…”

Expansion of CD4+CD25-GITR+ regulatory T-cell subset in the peripheral blood of patients with primary Sjögren's syndrome: correlation with disease activity

“…Animal models of the disease, although important for our understanding of the multiple mechanisms involved, must be integrated with more in depth studies into the human pathology. This would throw light on the etiopathogenetic aspects that require further explanation and would provide further elements to promote the therapeutic use of T REG cells in the treatment of systemic auto-immune pathologies (24).…”

Hair dyes as a risk for autoimmunity: from systemic lupus erythematosus to primary biliary cirrhosis

“…The mechanisms responsible for the induction of autoimmunity are poorly understood. Several articles published in this, as well as previous issues of the journal, are focusing on the investigation of mechanisms inducing autoimmunity and indeed autoimmune disease [ 18 , 69 – 83 ]. The mechanism of molecular mimicry and immunological cross-reactivity between infectious agents or xenobiotics and disease-specific autoantigens has been used to explain the loss of immunological tolerance in autoimmune gastrointestinal and liver diseases, including PBC [ 84 – 100 ].…”

“…As well, studies on genetically similar populations living under different conditions have demonstrated different incidence rates of autoimmune disease. The induction of autoimmune disease by these exposures may be through various mechanisms such as the alteration of autoantigen structure, altered expression of antigens, stimulatory effects on the immune system, T-cell dysregulation, apoptosis-mediated autoimmunity, molecular mimicry and immunological cross-reactivity [ 5 , 14 – 18 ].…”