Abstract:

BACKGROUND: To date, there are few domestic reports about the influence of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on T cells proliferation in patients with aplastic anemia. And no study addresses the topic that if bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells achieve immune regulation in aplastic anemia patients through inhibiting T cells proliferation.
OBJECTIVE: To explore the effects of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells on T cells immune regulation in patients with aplastic anemia.
METHODS: Human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were isolated, cultured and subcultivated in vitro. The morphological appearance of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells was observed and surface markers were measured by flow cyometry. The bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells were co-cultured with T cells extracted from peripheral blood of healthy volunteers and aplastic anemia patients for 7 days. The expressions of interferon-γ, interleukin-4 and interleukin-10 in the supernatants were detected with enzyme linked immunosorbent assay.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The levels of interleukin-2 and interferon-γ in the supernatant of aplastic anemia patients were significantly higher (P < 0.05), while levels of interleukin-4 and interleukin-10 were significantly lower than that in healthy controls (P < 0.05). Bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells suppressed the elevated levels of interleukin-2 and interferon-γ, and enhanced the decreased levels of interleukin-4 and interleukin-10, thus regulating the immune dysfunction of aplastic anemia patients.

Key words: stem cells, T-lymphocytes, anemia, aplastic, interleukins, interferon-γ