It has been reported that B cell activating factor belonging to the tumor necrosis factor family (BAFF) expression is increased in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However its role in this chronic inflammatory disease is not fully understood. Previous studies have suggested that BAFF also affects T cell function. We therefore investigated the effects of BAFF on T lymphocytes in COPD. BAFF was detected in the cells of sputum and the plasma. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated from COPD patients and treated with BAFF or BAFF plus BR3-Fc (BAFF antagonist). The apoptosis of CD4+ cells and CD8+ cells was analyzed by flow cytometry. CD4+ cells and CD8+ cells were isolated from peripheral blood of COPD patients respectively and treated with BAFF or BAFF plus BR3-Fc. Interferon-γ (IFN-γ) and interleukin-4 (IL-4) were detected in the CD4+ cells, and perforin and granzyme B were detected in the CD8+ cells. BAFF expression was increased in the cells of sputum and the plasma from COPD patients compared with control subjects. The plasma BAFF levels were inversely correlated with FEV1 percentage of predicted in patients with COPD. BAFF did not significantly alter the apoptosis of CD4+ cells, however it significantly inhibited the apoptosis of CD8+ cells from COPD patients. BAFF increased IFN-γ expression in the CD4+ cells from COPD patients, while it did not significantly alter the expresson of IL-4 in these cells. BAFF increased the expression of perforin and granzyme B in the CD8+ cells from COPD patients. Our findings indicate that BAFF may be involved in the inflammatory response in COPD via affecting T lymphocytes, suggesting a possible role of BAFF in the pathogenesis of COPD.

中文翻译：

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BAFF对慢性阻塞性肺疾病T淋巴细胞的影响

据报道，在慢性阻塞性肺疾病（COPD）中，属于肿瘤坏死因子家族（BAFF）表达的B细胞活化因子增加。然而，其在这种慢性炎性疾病中的作用尚不完全清楚。先前的研究表明BAFF也影响T细胞功能。因此，我们研究了BAFF对COPD中T淋巴细胞的影响。在痰细胞和血浆中检测到BAFF。从COPD患者中分离外周血单个核细胞（PBMC），并用BAFF或BAFF加BR3-Fc（BAFF拮抗剂）处理。通过流式细胞术分析CD4 +细胞和CD8 +细胞的凋亡。分别从COPD患者的外周血中分离CD4 +细胞和CD8 +细胞，并用BAFF或BAFF加BR3-Fc处理。在CD4 +细胞中检测到干扰素-γ（IFN-γ）和白介素-4（IL-4），在CD8 +细胞中检测到穿孔素和颗粒酶B。与对照组相比，COPD患者的痰细胞和血浆中的BAFF表达增加。血浆BAFF水平与COPD患者预测的FEV1百分比呈负相关。BAFF没有显着改变CD4 +细胞的凋亡，但是它显着抑制了COPD患者的CD8 +细胞的凋亡。BAFF增加了COPD患者CD4 +细胞中IFN-γ的表达，但并未明显改变这些细胞中IL-4的表达。BAFF增加了COPD患者CD8 +细胞中穿孔素和颗粒酶B的表达。