Role of Valpha24JalphaQ TCR T Cells in the Pathogenesis of Asthma
Project/Area Number |
09670600
|
Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
Section | 一般 |
Research Field |
Respiratory organ internal medicine
|
Research Institution | Chiba University Scool of Medicine |
Principal Investigator |
IWAMOTO Itsuo Chiba University, Associate Professor, 医学部, 助教授 (10111436)
|
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
KURASAWA Kazuhiro Chiba University, Assistant, 医学部, 助手 (30282479)
|
Project Period (FY) |
1997 – 1998
|
Project Status |
Completed (Fiscal Year 1998)
|
Budget Amount *help |
¥3,400,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000)
Fiscal Year 1998: ¥1,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000)
Fiscal Year 1997: ¥2,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000)
|
Keywords | Asthma / Valpha24JalphaQ TCR / NK T cells / IFN-gamma / Th2 cells / Th2タイプ免疫応答 / TCR / 免疫制御 |
Research Abstract |
Atopic disorders are caused by disregulated activation of T helper 2 (Th2) cells that produce IL-4 and IL-5, Because the presence of IL-4 potently augments the differentiation of naive T cells into Th2 cells, it is important to seek the cell population which provides IL- 4 for naive T cells. Recently, a unique subpopulation of T cells, natural killer (NK) T cells, has been shown to produce a large amount of IL-4 upon activation, suggesting their regulatory role in initiation of Th2 cell differentiation. To determine whether NK T cells play a role in human Th2 diseases, we analyzed the NK T cells in patients with asthma and atopic dermatitis (AD). We performed a frequency analysis of the invariant Valpha24JalphaQ CD4^-CD8^- T cells, probable human NK T cells, and found that the NK T cells are significantly decreased in patients with asthma and AD.In addition, we found that the majority of human NK T cells from healthy subjects produce IFN-gamma but not IL-4 upon activation. Taken together, these results suggest that the decrease of NK T cells, which produce IFN-y, may be involved in the pathogenesis of atopic diseases, such as asthma and AD.
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Report
(3 results)
Research Products
(6 results)