ISSN:
1365-3083
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is a chronic, progressive inflammatory myopathy. The inflammatory infiltrates are dominated by T cells, which frequently invade muscle fibres. The present study was performed to characterize the usage of the variable (V)segment of the T-cell receptor of muscle infiltrating cells in IBM. Using the reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) technique the authors analysed the expression of 22 Vα and 24 Vβ families in muscle tissue from six patientswith IBM displaying intense inflammatory cell infiltration. The following Vα/Vβ families appeared in at least 50% of the patients: Vα1, 5, 7, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21, 22 and Vβ3, 5.2, 8, 12, 14, 22. In all patients Vα7, 16 and Vβ8 wereexpressed in muscle tissue. Furthermore, in two of the patients peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) were investigated in parallel. There was a restricted usage of Vα and Vβ families in muscle in comparison to PBL, indicating a selective homing orlocal proliferation of T lymphocytes in the inflammatory lesions in IBM.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3083.1996.d01-10.x
