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The Activation of NF-κB in Infiltrated Mononuclear Cells Negatively Correlates with Treg Cell Frequency in Oral Lichen Planus

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Abstract

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a T cell-mediated chronic inflammatory mucosal disease with persistent accumulation of T cells in the lamina propria. Nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) is a major regulator of immune responses, and NF-κB-dependent cytokines and pro-inflammatory mediators can be detected in higher levels in the saliva and serum from patients with OLP. CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T (Treg) cells play an important role in the prevention of autoimmune pathology by regulating the immune response. To explore the correlation between NF-κB p65 activation and accumulation of Treg cells in patients with OLP, 40 ethnic Chinese patients with OLP and 10 healthy volunteers were recruited. The nuclear expression of NF-κB p65 in infiltrated mononuclear cells and Treg cells in the OLP lesion and the normal oral mucosa (NOM) was analyzed by immunohistochemistry assay. Our results showed that both the nuclear expression of NF-κB p65 and the number of Foxp3+ Treg were higher in the OLP lesions. Furthermore, the frequency of Treg cells was negatively correlated with NF-κB nuclear expression in subepithelial lymphocytic infiltrate of the OLP lesion. This finding provides a new insight into the pathogenesis of OLP and may contribute to novel therapeutic strategies for the treatment of OLP by modulating the immune system.

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Acknowledgments

We are particularly grateful to Dr. Eric Tu from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR/NIH, USA) for critical reading and suggestions for the manuscript. We thank the 111 Project of MOE & ISTCPC (2012DFA31370), China; and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (document no.: 81321002, 81472533 and 81400525)

Compliance with Ethical Standards

The authors declare that there is no potential conflict of interest. This study was approved by the Department of Oral Medicine, West China Hospital of Stomatology of Sichuan University, and the Committee for the Use of Human Subjects in Research in Sichuan University, with informed consent by all human participants involved in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases, West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, No. 14, Section 3, Renmin South Road, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China

    Dunfang Zhang, Jiayi Wang, Min Zhou, Qianming Chen & Xin Zeng

  2. Department of Stomatology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, No. 14, Section 3, Renmin South Road, Guangzhou, 510080, Guangdong, China

    Zhangwei Li

  3. Department of Oral Pathology, West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, No. 14, Section 3, Renmin South Road, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China

    Yu Chen

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  1. Dunfang Zhang
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  4. Min Zhou
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  6. Xin Zeng
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Correspondence to Xin Zeng or Yu Chen.

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Dunfang Zhang and Jiayi Wang contributed equally to this work.

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Zhang, D., Wang, J., Li, Z. et al. The Activation of NF-κB in Infiltrated Mononuclear Cells Negatively Correlates with Treg Cell Frequency in Oral Lichen Planus. Inflammation 38, 1683–1689 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10753-015-0145-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10753-015-0145-x

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