Objective:To study the expression of T follicular helper (Tfh) cells, B cells and their subsets in the peripheral blood of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and to preliminarily explore the relationship between Tfh cells and their subsets and the occurrence and development of SLE.Methods:A total of 38 SLE patients who were hospitalized in the Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from January 2020 to January 2021 and 23 healthy volunteers matched by age and gender were included. The expression of Tfh cells, B cells, their subsets and cytokines in the peripheral blood of healthy volunteers and SLE patients was analyzed by flow cytometry. The clinical data of SLE patients were collected to evaluate the correlation between Tfh cells and their subsets and disease activity.Results:The proportions of Tfh cells, primary B cells, memory B cells and plasma blasts in the peripheral blood of SLE patients and the level of interleukin-21 (IL-21) were significantly higher than those in healthy volunteers (all P<0.05). Among them, Tfh cells were mainly characterized by an increase in the proportion of Tfh17 cell subsets, and the proportion of Tfh17 cells was positively correlated with the systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index 2000 (SLEDAI-2K), primary B cells, and plasmatocytes ( r=0.592, 0.300, 0.379, all P<0.05). The proportion of Tfh cells was also positively correlated with SLEDAI-2K ( r=0.469, P<0.05). The proportions of Tfh cells and Tfh17 cells in the peripheral blood of SLE patients with medium to high disease activity were significantly higher than those in the low disease activity group (all P<0.05). After 3 months of treatment for SLE patients with medium to high disease activity, the proportions of Tfh ( P=0.04) and Tfh17 cells ( P=0.003) in the peripheral blood decreased compared with before. Conclusions:The disorder of Tfh cells and B cell subsets is involved in the occurrence and development of SLE. Peripheral blood Tfh17 cells can be used as biomarkers for evaluating the disease activity of SLE patients.

Objective:To study the expression of T follicular helper (Tfh) cells, B cells and their subsets in the peripheral blood of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and to preliminarily explore the relationship between Tfh cells and their subsets and the occurrence and development of SLE.Methods:A total of 38 SLE patients who were hospitalized in the Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital from January 2020 to January 2021 and 23 healthy volunteers matched by age and gender were included. The expression of Tfh cells, B cells, their subsets and cytokines in the peripheral blood of healthy volunteers and SLE patients was analyzed by flow cytometry. The clinical data of SLE patients were collected to evaluate the correlation between Tfh cells and their subsets and disease activity.Results:The proportions of Tfh cells, primary B cells, memory B cells and plasma blasts in the peripheral blood of SLE patients and the level of interleukin-21 (IL-21) were significantly higher than those in healthy volunteers (all P<0.05). Among them, Tfh cells were mainly characterized by an increase in the proportion of Tfh17 cell subsets, and the proportion of Tfh17 cells was positively correlated with the systemic lupus erythematosus disease activity index 2000 (SLEDAI-2K), primary B cells, and plasmatocytes ( r=0.592, 0.300, 0.379, all P<0.05). The proportion of Tfh cells was also positively correlated with SLEDAI-2K ( r=0.469, P<0.05). The proportions of Tfh cells and Tfh17 cells in the peripheral blood of SLE patients with medium to high disease activity were significantly higher than those in the low disease activity group (all P<0.05). After 3 months of treatment for SLE patients with medium to high disease activity, the proportions of Tfh ( P=0.04) and Tfh17 cells ( P=0.003) in the peripheral blood decreased compared with before. Conclusions:The disorder of Tfh cells and B cell subsets is involved in the occurrence and development of SLE. Peripheral blood Tfh17 cells can be used as biomarkers for evaluating the disease activity of SLE patients.

Objective:To investigate whether endogenous hydrogen sulfide (H2 S)was involved in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA)and its underlying mechanism,to detect H2 S and its synthases ex-pression in knee cartilage in patients diagnosed with different severity of OA,and to explore the transcrip-tion and expression of gene MMP-13 in chondrocytes treated with IL-1βor H2S.Methods:Synovial fluids of the in-patients with different severity of OA hospitalized in Peking University First Hospital were collected for measurement of H2 S content using methylene blue assay.Articular cartilages of the patients who underwent knee arthroplasty were collected for the cell culture of relatively normal chondrocytes.The chondrocytes were cultured to the P3 generation and H2 S molecular probes were used for detection of endogenous H2 S generation in the chondrocytes.Immunocytochemistry was used to detect the localization of H2 S synthases including cystathionine β-synthase (CBS),cystathionine-γ-lyase (CSE),and mercap-topyruvate sulfurtransferase (MPST)in OA chondrocytes.Western blot was used to quantify the protein expressions of CSE,MPST,and CBS in cartilage tissues of the patients who were diagnosed with OA and underwent knee arthroplasty.The relatively normal human chondrocytes were cultured to passage 3 and then divided into 4 groups for different treatments:(1 )the normal control group,no reagent was added;(2)the IL-1βgroup,5 μg/L of IL-1βwas added;(3)the IL-1β+H2S group,200 μmol/L of NaHS was added 30 min before adding 5 μg/L of IL-1β;(4)the H2 S group,200 μmol/L of NaHS was added. The transcription and expression of gene MMP-13 in chondrocytes of each group were determined with Real-time PCR and Western blot,respectively.And the total NF-κB p65 and phosphorylated NF-κB p65 in chondrocytes were detected with Western blot.Results:The content of H2 S in the synovial fluid of degenerative knee was (14.3 ±3.3)μmol/L.Expressions of endogenous H2 S and its synthases including CBS,CSE and MPST were present in the cytoplasm of chondrocytes.CSE protein expression in Grade 3 (defined by outerbridge grading)cartilage tissues was significantly increased as compared with that of Grade 1 cartilage tissues (1.67 ±0.09 vs.1.26 ±0.11,P<0.05).However,no significant difference of CBS or MPST expression among the different groups was observed.The expression of MMP-13 protein in the IL-1βgroup was significantly higher than that in the normal chondrocytes (1 .87 ±0.67 vs.0.22 ± 0.10,P<0.05 ),and that in the IL-1β+H2 S group was significantly decreased than that in the IL-1βgroup (0.55 ±0.11 vs.1.87 ±0.67,P<0.05),and that in the H2S group had no significant difference compared with that in the normal control group.The transcription of MMP-13 protein in the IL-1βgroup was significantly higher than that in the normal chondrocytes (31.40 ±0.31 vs.1.00 ±0.00,P<0.05), and that in the IL-1β+H2 S group was significantly decreased than that in the IL-1βgroup (24.41 ± 1.28 vs.31.40 ±0.31,P<0.05),and that in the H2S group had no significant difference compared with that in the normal control group.The total NF-κB p65 in the IL-1βgroup was significantly higher than that in the normal chondrocytes (2.13 ±0.08 vs.0.73 ±0.08,P<0.05),and that in the IL-1β+H2S group was significantly decreased than that in the IL-1βgroup (1 .24 ±0.13 vs.2.13 ±0.08,P<0.05 ),and that in the H2 S group had no significant difference compared with that in the normal control group.The phosphorylated NF-κB p65 in IL-1βgroup was significantly higher than that in the normal chondrocytes (1.30 ±0.13 vs.0.19 ±0.04,P<0.05),and that in IL-1β+H2S group was significantly decreased than that in the IL-1βgroup (0.92 ±0.26 vs.1.30 ±0.13,P<0.05),and that in the H2S group had no significant difference compared with that in the normal control group.Conclusion:H2 S affected the cartilage degeneration by partly inhibiting the degradation of extracellular matrix.