Features of the T-Immune System in Patients With Glomerulonephritises With Nephrotic Syndrome

Abstract

The study of issues related to glomerulonephritises with nephrotic syndrome is one of the urgent problems of medicine due to their prevalence worldwide, mainly in the young age group. Medical workers distinguish primary (idiopathic) nephrotic syndrome, which occurs in 80–90% of cases, and secondary nephrotic syndrome, mainly associated with systemic autoimmune diseases, diabetes mellitus and neoplasms. Glomerulonephritises, manifested by nephrotic syndrome (membranous nephropathy, focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, nephropathy with minimal changes), are known to be autoimmune diseases. To date, the immunological mechanisms of the pathogenesis of glomerulonephritises with nephrotic syndrome associated with the T-system of adaptive immunity remain unexplored. The aim of the study was to study the role of the T–immune system in the pathogenesis of primary nephrotic syndrome based on the study of immunoregulatory, activated T-cell subsets in patients with this pathology. Material and methods. 136 patients with chronic glomerulonephritis with nephrotic syndrome were selected for the study. The assessment of the T-immune system included determination of the lymphocyte phenotype of immunoregulatory T-cell subsets (T-helper/inducers, cytotoxic T-lymphocytes), various subpopulations of activated T-cells (activated T-lymphocytes; activated T-lymphocytes expressing CD25–alpha chain of IL-2 receptor; activated cytotoxic T-lymphocytes expressing HLA-DR and CD38) and regulatory T-cells (Treg cells). Study results. In the patients of the examined cohort, an increase in the number of T-lymphocytes and T-helper cells, as well as activated T-lymphocytes expressing HLA-DR antigens, was found. At this, the content of cytotoxic T-cells and the number of activated T-cells expressing the IL-2 – CD25 receptor did not differ from similar indicators in healthy individuals. The levels of Treg cells and activated cytotoxic T-lymphocytes with the CD3+CD8brightCD38+ phenotype were reduced. The immunoregulatory index (T-helpers/cytotoxic T-lymphocytes) was increased, due to an increase in the number of T-helper cells against the background of an unchanged number of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes. Conclusions. The results of the study indicate that the main features of the T-system of the immune response in primary nephrotic syndrome are imbalance in the ratio of the content of immunoregulatory cells due to predominance of T-helper cells and a decrease in the number of Treg cells.