RESUMO
OBJECTIVES AND DESIGN: Here we evaluated whether allergic rhinitis to Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus induces alterations on circulating B cell subsets. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Circulating B cell subsets and isotype expression on antigen-experienced B cells from allergic patients under conventional pharmacological treatment (NO-SIT, n = 15) and under subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT, n = 33), and non-allergic subjects (NC, n = 25) were analyzed by flow cytometry. RESULTS: In allergic patients, we found a significant decrease in IgM(+) and IgG(+) memory B cells and an increase in IgA(+) memory B cells. Additionally, the numbers of circulating IgA(+) plasmablasts in allergic patients were also increased, while those cells expressing IgM were reduced. CONCLUSIONS: Allergic patients have a disturbed B cell subsets distribution which seems to underlie rhinitis pathogenesis and remain unchanged after SCIT.
Assuntos
Subpopulações de Linfócitos B/imunologia , Subpopulações de Linfócitos B/patologia , Leucócitos Mononucleares/imunologia , Leucócitos Mononucleares/patologia , Rinite Alérgica/imunologia , Rinite Alérgica/patologia , Adulto , Animais , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus/imunologia , Dessensibilização Imunológica , Feminino , Citometria de Fluxo , Humanos , Imunoglobulina A/sangue , Imunoglobulina E/sangue , Imunoglobulina G/sangue , Imunoglobulina M/sangue , Imunoterapia , Masculino , Rinite Alérgica/terapiaRESUMO
The function of B cells in the immune response against Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is still regarded as secondary, although major findings in mouse models of tuberculosis (TB) support their participation as regulators and antibody producers. However, studies in cohorts of TB or multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) patients have failed to clearly identify changes in the circulating B cell pool. Therefore, in the present study we aimed at identifying alterations in the different B cell subpopulations in peripheral blood samples of HIV-negative pulmonary MDR-TB patients when compared to healthy donors. The data show, for the first time, that MDR-TB patients, similarly to what has been observed in other chronic inflammatory diseases, have a much lower frequency of peripheral blood unswitched IgD(+)CD27(+) memory B cells. Equally novel are the findings that in MDR-TB patients there is a reduction in the circulating plasma cell pool and that in MDR-TB there is an increased frequency of circulating type 1 transitional IgD(+)CD38(++), CD69(+) and TLR9(+) B cells. These results document disease-related shifts in peripheral blood B cell subsets in MDR-TB and suggest that such changes should be taken into account when designing new strategies to boost the cellular and humoral immune response against Mtb.
