J Korean Rheum Assoc.  2004 Mar;11(1):25-36.

Reciprocal Activation of Fibroblast-like Synoviocyte and Type II Collagen-reactive T cell in Rheumatoid Arthritis

• Yoon CH
• Park MK
• Cho ML
• Ko HJ
• Park KS
• Kim WU
• Min JK
• Lee SH
• Hong YS
• Park SH
• Cho CS
• Kim HY

Abstract

OBJECTIVE
To investigate the interaction between type II collagen (CII)-reactive T cell and fibroblast-like synoviocyte in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
METHODS
Peripheral blood T cells from RA patients were cultured with bovine CII and analyzed by flow cytometry. After co-culture with CII-reactive T cells and fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS), the expression of cytokines (IL-15 and TNF-alpha from FLS, IFN-gamma and IL-17 from CII-reactive T cells) were determined by ELISA and RT-PCR.
RESULTS
CII-reactive T cells expressed CD69, one of the early activation markers, and produced significant amount of IFN-gamma, and proliferated. IL-15 and TNF-alpha expression from FLS were significantly elevated when co-culture with CII-reactive T cells and inhibited by physical interruption of cell-to-cell contact or anti-CD40 antibody. IFN-gamma and IL-17 expression from CII-reactive T cells were also significantly elevated when co-culture with FLS and inhibited by anti-IL-15 monoclonal antibody.
CONCLUSIONS
CII-reactive T cells can activate FLS to secret proinflammatoy cytokines and interactions between these two cells drive further activation of each other. These data suggest that CII-reactive T cell may play a important role in pathogenesis of RA.

Keyword

Type II collagen; T cell; Fibroblast-like synoviocyte; RA

MeSH Terms

Arthritis, Rheumatoid*
Coculture Techniques
Collagen Type II
Cytokines
Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay
Flow Cytometry
Humans
Interleukin-15
Interleukin-17
T-Lymphocytes
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
Collagen Type II
Cytokines
Interleukin-15
Interleukin-17
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha