The characteristic expression of cytokines and toll-like receptors by CD3+ cells in leukemia.

摘要

Toll-like receptors and cytokines function in immune regulation and thus may be dysregulated in disease. In the present study, 25 leukemia cases and 10 normal controls were analyzed by flow cytometry for differential cytokine and TLR expression. Percentages of CD3+ cells producing TNF-alpha, IL-2, IL-3, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, and IFN-gamma and TLR3, TLR4, TLR8, and TLR9 expression levels in CD3+ cells were determined. Statistically significant differences between lymphocytic leukemic cases and normals were observed for all cytokines except IL-12. Differences in expression of all cytokines other than IL-6 and IFN-gamma proved to be statistically significant between myeloid leukemic and normal cases. IFN-gamma and IL-3 dual-staining was observed to be most prominent in leukemic samples. The increased expression level of TLR9 in leukemic cases compared to levels in normal controls was statistically significant. These results warrant further study of the mechanism and potential therapeutic value targeting these leukemic patterns.