Peripheral B-cell Activation And Exhaustion Markers In Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis

Backgroud:Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is an autoimmune disease. B cells arecritical regulators of the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. However,the role of different B cell subsets in the pathogenesis of AS remainsunclear. This study was aimed at examining the frequency of differentsubsets of B cells in patients with the onset AS and following standardtherapies.Experimental Purpose:Observed before and after treatment in patients with ankylosingspondylitis in peripheral blood B cells subsets activation, apoptosis.Experimental methods:We selected18cases of ankylosing spondylitis in peripheral blood ofpatients with new onset as experimental group,10healthy humanperipheral blood as control group (HC). The expression of CD27, CD38,CD86, CD95, IgD on B cells were examined by flow cytometry. Thedisease activity was measured by the Bath Ankylosing SpondylitisDisease Activity Index (BASDAI). Serum levels of C-reactive protein(CRP), rheumatoid factor (RF), serum concentrations of IgG, IgA, IgMand erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) were determined.Results:The CD27+CD19+B cells were decreased in AS patients compared withHC (p=0.018). While CD86+and CD27-CD95+B cell subsets increasedin AS patients (p<0.001). Meantime CD38+and CD95+B cells positively correlated with the BASDAI (r=0.7954, p=0.0183; r=0.8595,p=0.0062, respectively). And CD38-CD86+B cells negatively correlatedwith the BASDAI (r=-0.7434, p=0.0345). We also found that CD27-andCD95+CD19+B cells negatively correlated with rheumatoid factor (RF)(r=-0.6548, p=0.0399; r=-0.8294, p=0.0030, respectively). AndCD27+CD19+B cells positively correlated with IgG (p=0.0269,r=0.8628). CD86+and CD27-CD95+B cell subsets increased After treatwith Meloxicam, Etanercept for1month (p=0.002,0.003).Conclusions:These findings suggest that the CD27-CD95+CD19+and CD86+CD19+B cells may be reasonable cellular targets for therapeutic intervention.