Essay:Are regulatory T cells required for the suppression of allergic manifestations in diseased humans upon allergen-specific immunotherapy?

Baars, I. (2015) Essay:Are regulatory T cells required for the suppression of allergic manifestations in diseased humans upon allergen-specific immunotherapy? Bachelor's Thesis, Biology.

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Abstract

Allergies are characterized by an increase in CD4+ Th2 cells. Regulatory T (Treg) cells are able to suppress inflammatory cells via multiple pathways and can therefore help induce tolerance against environmental allergens. This suggests a possible role for Treg cells in allergy treatment by specific immunotherapy (SIT). It is currently unknown whether Treg cells are really required for the suppression of allergic manifestations in diseased humans upon SIT treatment. Therefore, it was investigated whether Treg cells are required for successful SIT by reviewing several studies. The increase in Th2 cells associated to allergies was confirmed using ELISPOT analysis. When allergic patients were treated with SIT, changes in several cell subsets were observed. First, Th2/Th1 and Th2/Tr1 ratios were decreased by SIT treatment. An increase in the number of Th2 and Tr1 cells upon SIT treatment was demonstrated using ELISPOT analysis. The increase in Tr1 cells was more prevalent than the increase in Th2 cells. Co-culturing of Tr1 and effector T (Teff) cells showed that Tr1 cells are able to suppress Teff cells. It was also demonstrated that Foxp3+ Treg cells are not increased by SIT, but that Foxp3- Treg cells are. Foxp3 expression was measured by either flow cytometry or qPCR. The number of CD4+CD25+CD127low Treg cells, which have been shown to represent Foxp3+ Treg cells, was also measured by FACS. No changes in CD4+CD25+CD127low Treg cell frequencies were observed after SIT. It was also shown that CD27− allergen-specific CD4+ T cells are decreased by SIT. These results together indicate that SIT increases adaptive Treg frequencies and can decrease CD4+CD27− Th2 cells.

Item Type:	Thesis (Bachelor's Thesis)
Degree programme:	Biology
Thesis type:	Bachelor's Thesis
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	15 Feb 2018 08:05
Last Modified:	15 Feb 2018 08:05
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/12976

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