Analyses of relation between cytokine production, apoptosis and clinicopathological findings in Sjogren's syndrom patients

2002 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 12470430
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Surgical dentistry
• Research Institution: Hokkaido University
• Principal Investigator: HIROSHI Fukkuda Hokkaido Univ. Dental Medicine Professor, 大学院・歯学研究科, 教授 (30001019)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): MOTOAKI Yasuda Hokkaido Univ. Dental Medicine Ass. Professor, 大学院・歯学研究科, 助教授 (90239765) ; ICHIZO Kobayashi Hokkaido Univ. Dental Hospital Lecturer, 大学院・歯学研究科, 講師 (70170305) ; MASANOBU Shindo Hokkaido Univ. Dental Medicine Ass. Professor, 大学院・歯学研究科, 助教授 (20162802) ; CHIHIRO Sugiura Hokkaido Univ. Dental Medicine Instructor, 大学院・歯学研究科, 助手 (30312375)
• Project Period (FY): 2000 – 2002
• Keywords: Sjogren's syndrome / Clinicopatogical finding / apoptosis / cytokine

Research Abstract

This study reviled that there were correlations between functional disorder of a salivary gland and distinctive punctate-shadowing on a sialograpy (grade III and grade IV) as well as decreased number of CD 4/ CD 8 ratio of peripheral blood cells in Sjogren's syndrome (SS) patients. It has been reported that there was a significant correlation between destruction of peripheral duct of parotid gland and appearances of distinctive punctate-shadowing on a sialogram (grade III and grade IV). So that we speculated that histopathological destruction or disorder of peripheral duct in salivary glands might be a explicable reason of functional disorder of a salivary gland in SS patients. Further more some researchers reported that decreased number of CD 4/ CD 8 ratio of peripheral blood cells in SS patients might have correlation with cytokine productivity of peripheral lymphocytes of SS patients. In this study, we reported the increase in Th1/Th2 ratio in salivary gland as well as systemic increase correlated with the severity of the underlying condition assessed by sialograpy. We have to investigate and clarify the details of shift of cytokine network, Th1/Th2 balance and cause of functional disorder in SS patients
Further more, Vissink reported that functional disorder of a salivary gland by irradiation was followed with histopathological change of the organ in rat experiment system. This might allowed us to assume that functional disorder of a salivary gland was followed with histopathological change in SS patients as well. Recently it was reported that disorder of signaling pathway in salivary gland had correlation with malfunction of salivary gland in SS as well as other salivary gland diseases. We thought that it was necessary to clarify the correlation between signaling pathway and funcional disorder of salivary gland in SS patients.