Objective To investigate the expression and significance of T-bet in experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU). Methods EAU was induced in 24 Lewis rats by immunization with retinal S-antigen (50 ?g) and complete Freund′s adjuvant, and another 4 rats were the healthy control. The rats with EAU were executed 7, 12, 15, 21 days after immunization, respectively. Immunohistochemical single and double staining were performed using monoclonal antibodies of T-bet or CD4 on the ocular wholemounts and the consecutive sections of the eye and spleen from both 24 immunized Lewis rats and 4 normal controls. The positive cells were counted under the optic microscope and the data were analyzed by SPSS 11.0 statistic software. Results A few T-bet positive cells were observed in the normal ocular tissues and spleen. The expressions of T-bet in the iris, retina, and spleen increased 7 days after immunization, reached the peak at the 15th day, and decreased at the 21st day, which were higher than those in the control. Double staining on the consecutive sections revealed that most of the T-bet positive cells were positive for CD4 monoclonal antibody. Conclusion T-bet may affect the occurrence of EAU by activating Th1 cells.

Objective To investigate the expression of T cell receptor (TCR) V ?8.3 gene on CD4+ T lymphocytes in the rats with experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU). Methods Eighteen Lewis rats were divided into EAU, complete Freund′s adjuvant, and the control group. Interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein (IRBP) R16 peptide was synthesized using Fmoc procedure for induction of EAU. Magnetic absorption cell sorting (MACS) method was used to isolate the CD4+ T lymphocytes from the spleen of the rats. Flow cytometry was used to monitor the efficiency of isolation. The expression of TCR V ?8.3 gene segment on CD4+T lymphocytes was determined by fluorescent quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Results EAU was successfully induced in the Lewis rats immunized with IRBP R16 peptide. The proportion of CD4+ T lymphocytes isolated by means of MACS was statistically higher than that before isolation (P