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. 2018 Mar;14(2):361-369.
doi: 10.5114/aoms.2018.73469. Epub 2018 Feb 21.

Expression of selected genes of dendritic and Treg cells in blood and skin of morphea patients treated with UVA1 phototherapy

Agnieszka J Osmola-Mańkowska  1 , Ewa Teresiak-Mikołajczak  1 , Michał J Kowalczyk  2 , Ryszard W Żaba  2 , Zygmunt Adamski  3 , Aleksandra Dańczak-Pazdrowska  3
Affiliations

Expression of selected genes of dendritic and Treg cells in blood and skin of morphea patients treated with UVA1 phototherapy

Agnieszka J Osmola-Mańkowska et al. Arch Med Sci. 2018 Mar.

Abstract

Introduction: Morphea is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by fibrosis of the skin. Dendritic cells (DC) and regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a significant role in development of autoimmune and tolerance mechanisms. The aim of the study was to establish the expression of selected genes of plasmacytoid and myeloid DC, Treg cells, and the microenvironment of cytokines (interleukin-17A (IL-17A), transforming growth factor β (TGF-β)) in blood and skin of morphea patients. In addition, the effect of UVA1 phototherapy on expression of the aforementioned genes was evaluated.

Material and methods: The study was performed on 15 blood and 10 skin samples from patients with morphea. The evaluation included expression of CLEC4C (C-type lectin domain family 4, member C receptor), Lymphocyte antigen 75 (LY75), Forkhead box p3 (foxp3) transcription factor, IL-17A and TGF-β genes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and in skin samples both before and after UVA1 phototherapy using real-time polymerase chain reaction.

Results: The study revealed lower expression of CLEC4C before (p = 0.010) and after (p = 0.009) phototherapy and lower expression of IL-17A before (p = 0.038) phototherapy in PBMC of patients with morphea vs. the control group. Expression of CLEC4C in PBMC correlated negatively (rho = -0.90; p = 0.001) with activity of disease after phototherapy. No significant differences were found between expression of analysed genes before and after UVA1 therapy in PBMC and skin of morphea patients.

Conclusions: The results do not confirm the involvement of analysed subsets of DC and Tregs in UVA1 phototherapy in morphea, but point to CLEC4C as a possible biomarker associated with the disease activity.

Keywords: myeloid dendritic cells; plasmacytoid dendritic cells; regulatory T cells.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
LoSSI scores before and after UVA1 treatment in the group of morphea patients
Figure 2
Figure 2
LoSDI scores before and after UVA1 treatment in the group of morphea patients
Figure 3
Figure 3
Expression of CLEC4C (A) and IL-17A (B) gene in PBMC in morphea patients. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 4
Figure 4
Correlation between ANA titre and foxP3 expression in skin samples after phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 5
Figure 5
Correlation between LoSSI and the expression of CLEC4C in PBMC after phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 6
Figure 6
Correlation between expression of IL-17A and expression of TGF-β in PBMC after phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 7
Figure 7
Correlation between expression of Ly75 in the skin and the expression of foxP3 in the skin before phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 8
Figure 8
Correlation between expression of Ly75 in skin and expression of CLEC4C in PBMC before phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
Figure 9
Figure 9
Correlation between expression of foxP3 in skin and TGF-β in PBMC before phototherapy. Expression levels are expressed as copies of gene of interest per million of the geometric mean of ACTB copies and GAPD copies
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