Background/Aims: The proportions of intestinal and peripheral regulatory T cells (Tregs) in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) were poorly investigated, as well as different subsets of these cells. Helios and Neuropilin-1 were proposed as markers differentiating between thymic and peripheral Tregs. Therefore, the aim of current work was to investigate the proportions of Tregs and expression of Helios and Neuropilin-1 in Tregs in peripheral blood and intestinal mucosa of children with inflammatory bowel disease.
Materials and methods: Fifteen patients newly diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease: ulcerative colitis (n=7) and Crohn’s disease (n=8) were included in the study. Nine children who presented with no abnormalities in colonoscopy served as a control group. Quantification of regulatory T cells of the CD4⁺CD25^highFOXP3⁺ phenotype, as well as Helios⁺ and Neuropilin-1⁺ in peripheral blood and bowel mucosa was based on multicolor flow cytometry.
Results: The rates of circulating and intestinal Tregs were significantly higher in the studied group than in the control group. The rate of intestinal T regulatory lymphocytes was significantly higher than circulating Tregs in patients with IBD, but not in the control group. The median proportion of circulating FOXP3⁺Helios⁺ cells amounted to 24.83% in IBD patients and 15.93% in the controls. The median proportion of circulating FOXP3⁺Nrp-1⁺ cells was 34.23% in IBD and 21.01% in the control group. No statistically significant differences were noted for the circulating FOXP3⁺Helios⁺ cells and FOXP3⁺Nrp-1⁺ cells between the studied and the control group.
Conclusion: The rates of circulating and intestinal T regulatory cells are increased in naïve pediatric patients with IBD. The rate of Tregs is higher in intestinal mucosa than in peripheral blood in patients with IBD. Flow cytometry is a valuable method assessing the composition of infiltrates in inflamed tissue. Helios and Neuropilin-1 likely cannot serve as markers to differentiate between natural and adaptive Tregs.

Keywords: T regulatory cells, circulating Tregs, intestinal Tregs, Helios, Neuropilin-1, IBD, inflammatory bowel disease, children


中文翻译：

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炎症性肠病患儿循环和肠道 T 调节细胞的增强及其 Helios 和 Neuropilin-1 的表达

背景/目的：小儿炎症性肠病 (IBD) 中肠道和外周调节性 T 细胞 (Tregs) 的比例以及这些细胞的不同亚群的研究很少。Helios 和 Neuropilin-1 被提议作为区分胸腺和外周 Treg 的标志物。因此，本研究的目的是研究炎症性肠病患儿外周血和肠黏膜中Tregs的比例以及Helios和Neuropilin-1在Tregs中的表达。
材料和方法：15 名新诊断为炎症性肠病的患者：溃疡性结肠炎（n=7）和克罗恩病（n=8）被纳入研究。九名结肠镜检查无异常的儿童作为对照组。外周血和肠粘膜中CD4 ⁺ CD25^高FOXP3 ⁺表型的调节性 T 细胞以及 Helios ⁺和 Neuropilin-1 ^{+的定量基于多色流式细胞术。}
结果：研究组的循环和肠道 Tregs 率显着高于对照组。IBD 患者肠道调节性 T 淋巴细胞的比率显着高于循环 Tregs，但在对照组中则不然。^{IBD 患者循环 FOXP3 +} Helios ⁺细胞的中位比例为 24.83%，对照组为 15.93%。^{IBD 中循环 FOXP3 +} Nrp-1 ⁺细胞的中位比例为 34.23%，对照组为 21.01%。^{循环的 FOXP3 +} Helios ⁺细胞和 FOXP3 ⁺ Nrp-1 ⁺没有发现统计学上的显着差异研究组和对照组之间的细胞。
结论：幼稚 IBD 患者的循环和肠道调节性 T 细胞的比率增加。在 IBD 患者中，肠黏膜中 Tregs 的比率高于外周血。流式细胞术是评估炎症组织浸润成分的一种有价值的方法。Helios 和 Neuropilin-1 可能不能作为区分自然和适应性 Treg 的标志物。

关键词：调节性T细胞，循环Tregs，肠Tregs，Helios，Neuropilin-1，IBD，炎症性肠病，儿童