[A study on red blood cell immune function in patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome and multiple sclerosis]

Abstract

In order to understand whether there is red blood cell (RBC) immune dysfunction and the relationship between RBC immune abnormality and clinical state in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), RBC immune function and circulation immune complex (CIC) level were evaluated in patient with these two diseases by using RBC immune adhesion test. It was found that the rate of formation of red blood cell-C3b receptor-yeast rosette was significantly lower in patients with these two diseases before and after treatment than that in a control group (P < 0.01). The rate of formation of red blood cell-immune complex-yeast rosette and the CIC level in GBS group were notably higher than that in the control group (P < 0.05). Moreover, we observed that the immune functions in patients with severe GBS and active MS were different from those in patients with mild GBS and stable MS and the change of each immune index in GBS and MS patients was related with the degree of recovery and the clinical state. These results suggested that decreased capability of RBC immune adhesion in patients with GBC and MS may be one of factors causing these diseases.