Open AccessDecreased interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ)‐producing T cells in patients with acute Kawasaki disease
Author(s) -
Tomoyo Matsubara,
Kumiko Katayama,
Takashi Matsuoka,
Masanori Fujiwara,
Mayumi Koga,
Susumu Furukawa
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
clinical & experimental immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.329
H-Index - 135
eISSN - 1365-2249
pISSN - 0009-9104
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2249.1999.00899.x
Subject(s) - kawasaki disease , immunology , cytokine , flow cytometry , vasculitis , interferon gamma , medicine , interferon , disease , pathology , artery
Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute febrile illness of early childhood, in which the activation of monocytes/macrophages plays a central role in the development of vasculitis during the acute stage of disease. In this study we investigated peripheral blood T cells of 10 patients with KD, focusing on the Th1 and Th2 imbalance, using intracellular cytokine staining and analysis of the cytokine‐producing T cells by flow cytometry. We observed a decrease in the numbers of IFN‐γ‐producing, but not IL‐4‐producing, CD3 + T cells, during the acute stage. Our results suggest that there is an imbalance of Th1 and Th2 subsets during the acute stage of KD.