Expression Of IL-1R8 And Immunomodulatory Role Of Its Ligand IL37 In Allergic Rhinitis Patients

Objective:To investigate the expression of IL-1R8 on CD4+ T cells and dendritic cells(DCs)from patients with allergic rhinitis(AR).And further explore the effects of its ligand IL-37 on the excessive Th17 and Th2 responses in patients with AR.Explore the influence of IL-37 on DC-induced T helper(Th)-17 and Th2 responses in CD4+ T cells,the expression of co-stimulatory molecules of DCs as well as the production of cytokines by DCs.Method:The expression of IL-1R8 on DCs and CD4+ T cells was measured by flow cytometry and RT-PCR.The effects of IL-37 on CD4+ T cells were analysed by and flow cytometry and ELISA.Flow cytometry and ELISA were used to measure the influence of IL-37 on DC-induced Th17 and Th2 responses in CD4+ T cells,the expression of co-stimulatory molecules of DCs as well as the production of cytokines by DCs.Result:We found that IL-1R8 expression was very low on resting CD4+ T cells but increased strongly on CD4+ T cells following T cell activation.Furthermore,IL-1R8 expression on CD4+ T cells was markedly higher in AR patients than in healthy controls.The production of IL-17 and IL-4 by CD4+ T cells significantly decreased after stimulation with IL-37 for three days.Flow cytometry analysis the percentage of Th 17 and Thl cells got a similar result.The expression of IL-1R8 on DCs was weak.And,rIL-37-mediated activation of DCs had no effects on the development of Th17 and Th2 cells as well as IL-4 and IL-17 production by CD4+ T cells in humans.Furthermore,rIL-37 did not influence the expression of co-stimulatory molecules of DCs including CD40,CD80,HLA-DR and CD86 as well as the production of IL-6,IL-10,and IL-10 by DCs.Conclusion:Our study revealed that the expression of IL-1R8 significantly increased on in vitro-activated CD4+ T cells and was markedly higher on CD4+ T cells from AR patients than on cells from healthy controls.Meanwhile,in AR patients,the IL-1R8 ligand IL-37 could potentially modulate aberrant immune responses by attenuating IL-17 and IL-4 production by CD4+ T cells.Additionally,the suppressive effects were independent of DCs.Therefore,the IL-37/IL-1R8 axis may be involved in pathogenesis of AR and may have therapeutic potential for AR.