engleski

Comparison of activation status, cytolytic potential and functional reactivity of decidual NKT (dNKT) and peripheral blood NKT (pbNKT) cells

Problem: NKT cells are mostly attributed with immunomodulatory functions, but also possess cytolytic potential. Our aim was to compare and characterize first trimester pregnancy dNKT and pbNKT cells, defined as CD3+CD56+ population, with regard to their activation status, cytolytic mediators expression and cytokine responsiveness. Method of Study: Freshly isolated decidual and peripheral blood mononuclear cells were stained for presence of CD25, CD45RA, CD69, FasL, TRAIL, perforin and granulysin. Also, their responsiveness to 24h-stimulation with IL-12, IL-15 and IL-18 was assessed. Results: Preliminary results suggest that both dNKT and pbNKT cells do not express FasL and TRAIL, neither are CD69 and CD25 positive. In contrast, high proportion expresses perforin and granulysin. Almost all pbNKT cells are CD45RA+, while only 40% of dNKT cells have that marker. Conclusions: Expression of cytolytic mediators is comparable among populations studied. It seems that pbNKT cells are almost entirely naive while the same could be said for only 40% of dNKT cells. Also, dNKT and pbNKT cells show different responsiveness to mentioned cytokines. The experiments are partially financed by Croatian Ministry of Science Grant No. 0620402-0376 and EMBIC project, European FP6, NoE, No. 512040, LSHM-CT-2004-512040.

NKT cells; pregnancy; peripheral blood NKT cells

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