The role of Th1/Th2 cytokines played in regulation of specific CD4 ⁺ Th1 cell conversion and activation during inflammatory reaction of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract

CD4 Th1-CXCR3 signalling pathway may play a key role in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The aim of this study was to explore Th1/Th2 cytokines ratio differences in patients in different stages of COPD and to confirm the hypothesis that elastin exposure might serve as an antigen to initiate the stimulation of CD4 Th1-CXCR3 immune inflammation pathway. Patients of COPD in different stages and normal individuals were enrolled. Ten millilitres of peripheral blood was drawn from patients. The concentration of CXCR3, IFN-γ, IL-2, IL-4 and IL-13 in plasma was detected by ELISA. The Naïve CD4 T cells were isolated from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells, which were stimulated by elastin and collagen before determining the level of IFN-γ secretion by ELISPOT. Compared with control group, the concentration of CXCR3 in the acute exacerbation COPD (AECOPD) group was higher (P < .05). The concentration of IFN-γ and IL-2 in AECOPD group was lower than that in remission (P < .05). The concentration of IFN-γ in the AECOPD and remission was higher than that in controls (P < .05), while IL-2 was opposite (P < .01). The concentration of IL-4 and IL-13 in AECOPD group was higher than that in the controls (P < .05). The CD4 Th1 cells stimulated by the elastin as antigen secreted more IFN-γ than that by collagen (P < .01). CXCR3 was highly expressed in patients with COPD. There were different Th1/Th2 cytokines in different stages of COPD. The CD4+Th1-specific conversion and activation may be an initiator of COPD immune inflammatory response.

ILC2s Induce Adaptive Th2-Type Immunity in Acute Exacerbation of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

“…Normally, Th1/Th2 cells are in a relatively balanced state under normal conditions. However, studies have shown that there are imbalances of Th1/Th2 in different periods of COPD [10, 31]. In this study, we found that Th1 cells gradually increased in stable phase of COPD and AECOPD, and the expression of IFN- γ also showed the same trend.…”

“…Lower respiratory tract bacterial infection is an important factor in the occurrence of AECOPD, which can lead to immune dysfunction. Studies also found that the abnormality of T cell subsets is the main cause of immune dysfunction in COPD [7–9] and Th1/Th2 imbalance may be one of the causes of AECOPD [10]. It is reported that the activation and proliferation of Th2 cells in the peripheral blood of patients with AECOPD were more obvious, resulting in a significant downregulation of Th1/Th2 ratio and a shift to Th2 responses [11].…”

Clinical significance of changes in serum inflammatory factors in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pulmonary infection

“…Pulmonary infection may directly affect lung function and the prognosis of patients with COPD. WBCs, 11 CRP, 21 IL-6, 13 IL-8 14 and TNF-α 15 are associated with inflammatory cells and the alveolar epithelium in patients with COPD; these factors are closely related to the level of infection, lung function, and severity of illness. Higher levels of inflammatory indicators in the blood are associated with more severe infection and more serious lung damage.…”

The elastin peptide VGVAPG increases CD4+ T-cell IL-4 production in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

“…A recent study demonstrated that in COPD patients with acute exacerbation the level of Th1 was reduced whereas the level of Th2 was predominant. Oppositely, Th2 cells have been shown to decrease in stable COPD patients while Th1 cells increased [31]. In our study, using an IFN-γ-expressing CD4 + T-cells percentage of < 12% as threshold, we identified and selected two distinct groups of patients: (i) a first group of patients with more than 40% of CD4 + T-cells expressing IL-4 (IL-4 high IFN-γ low ) and (ii) a second group with less of 20% of CD4 + T-cells expressing IL-4 (IL-4 low IFN-γ low ).…”