Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 171 182 EN Masoomeh Jannesar Immunology, Asthma and Allergy Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran Maryam Sharif Shoushtari Immunology, Asthma and Allergy Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran AND Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran Ahmad Majd Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, North Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran Zahra Pourpak Immunology, Asthma and Allergy Research Institute, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2016 10 08 2017 01 25 Bee pollen grains, as the male reproductive part of seed-bearing plants contain considerable concentrations of various phytochemicals and nutrients. Since antiquity, people throughout the world used pollens to cure colds, flu, ulcers, premature aging, anemia and colitis. It is now well-documented that some bee pollen secondary metabolites (e.g. flavonoid) may have positive health effects. In recent years, the flavonoids have attracted much interest because of their wide range of biological properties and their beneficial effects on human health. The current review, points out potential therapeutic effects of bee pollen flavonoids as one of the main bee pollen bioactive compounds in allergic and immunological diseases. Due to the fact that some types of flavonoid components in bee pollen have anti-allergic, anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, bee pollen flavonoids can be excellent candidates for future studies including phytotherapy, molecular pharmacology and substitutes for chemicals used in treating allergic and immunological disorders. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1092 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1092/740

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 183 192 EN Mohsen Ebrahimi Neonatal and Children's Health Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran AND Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Children’s Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mohammad Gharagozlou Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Children’s Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Ali Mohebbi Growth and Development Research Center, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Nasim Hafezi Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran Gholamreza Azizi Non-Communicable Diseases Research Center, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran; AND Department of Laboratory Medicine, Imam Hassan Mojtaba Hospital, Alborz University of Medical Sciences, Karaj, Iran Masoud Movahedi Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Children’s Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2016 04 28 2016 09 05 Cow's milk allergy is the most common type of food allergy that decrease the quality of life of patients and their families. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of oral immunotherapy in patients with cow's milk allergy. 14 patients above 3 years of age with a history of cow's milk allergy confirmed by positive double blind placebo controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) test, presence of serum IgE against cow's milk and positive SPT (skin prick test) were enrolled in this study. During the immunotherapy all patients received increasing amounts of cow's milk during three phases. The type and severity of allergic reactions were recorded after each dose. The serum IgE and SPT were measured at the beginning and at the end of study. Since February 2014 to March 2015, 14 patients with the median age of 4.75 (3.7-7) years were studied. 13 patients (92.9%) completed the build up and maintenance phase successfully and became desensitized to cow's milk. During the build up and maintenance phase, 24 (2.0%) and 11 (0.9%) episodes of allergic reactions occurred, respectively. The median serum IgE level against cow's milk proteins and casein decreased from 39.3 to 10.4 and 7.72 to 2.83 (ku/L), respectively. The median of the difference of the wheal diameter in SPT with the control, decreased from 10 to 6 mm during the immunotherapy protocol. Oral immunotherapy is effective to decrease the frequency and the severity of allergic reactions but due to high rate of allergic reactions and possible anaphylaxis, it must be done under strict supervision of both clinicians and caregivers. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/898 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/898/741

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 193 197 EN Fuat Erel Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey Nurhan Sarioglu Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey Mehmet Kose Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey Mustafa Kaymakci Department of Ear, Nose and Throat, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey Mucahide Gokcen Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey Ahmet Kepekci Department of Ear, Nose and Throat, Meltem Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey Mehmet Arslan Department of Health Public, Faculty of Medicine, Balikesir University, Balikesir, Turkey 2016 04 22 2016 09 13 Taking medical history, physical examination, and performing some in vivo and in vitro tests are necessary for the diagnosis of allergy. Skin prick test (SPT) is considered as the standard method and first-line approach for the detection of allergic sensitization. Although mainly SPT is used for the detection of allergic sensitization, intradermal skin test (IDST) may be necessary, especially in patients with a negative SPT result. IDST is quite safe; however, is nowadays seldom used for detection of inhalant allergy and its value remains controversial. We aimed to investigate whether IDST is useful and necessary in diagnosis of respiratory allergies or not. This study involved 4223 patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) and/or bronchial asthma (BA). SPT results were positive in 2419 patients (57%) and negative in 1804 (43%). IDST was applied to 344 patients with marked allergic symptoms and with negative SPT results. Out of 344 patients, 152 (44%) showed allergic sensitization to IDST. The most commonly encountered allergic response was against the house dust mite (HDM) (32.6%). Allergic response against fungal spores was also relatively high (22%), while the pollen allergy rate (4.3%) was quite low. In BA patients with negative prick test, IDST made a significant contribution to the diagnosis of HDM allergy (p=0.003). To avoid missed diagnosis of AR and BA, particularly regarding  the HDM allergy, application of IDST may be beneficial; therefore, IDST should be considered as the next step after SPT for diagnosis of allergy prior to in vitro or provocation tests.  https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/889 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/889/734

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 198 204 EN Saeideh Mazloomzadeh Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran Niousha Bakhshi Mousavi Hospital, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran Akefeh Ahmadiafshar Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran AND Mousavi Hospital, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran AND Metabolic Diseases Research Center, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran Mehdi Gholami Zanjan Cultural Heritage Department, Zanjan, Iran 2016 09 28 2017 01 31 The asthma treatment and control might be associated with significant burden on family and community‚ thus exploring other therapeutic plans could be desirable. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of salt space on clinical findings and peak expiratory flow rate among children with asthma. In this randomized crossover trial, 34 patients aged 6-14 years old with mild to moderate asthma were selected and randomly divided into two groups. The first group went through a period of salt therapy by staying in the salt room for one hour, three times a week for 3 consecutive weeks and then was under observation for three weeks. This process was reversed for the second group (three weeks under observation followed by salt therapy). The wash-out period was one week. During the study, the morning and evening peak expiratory flow (PEF), the frequency of coughing, wheezing, dyspnea and use of rescue medications were measured. Salt therapy had a significant effect on raising the morning and evening PEF in the second week in both groups (p=0.028 and p=0.032, respectively). However, there was no significant effect on PEF variabilities‚ cough‚ wheezing, dyspnea, and the frequency of rescue medication (p>0.05). No side effect was observed during salt therapy. This study showed the significant effect of salt therapy on PEF rate of the patients in the second week. However, further studies with different frequency and time of salt therapy on respiratory disorders are recommended.  https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1079 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1079/739

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 205 218 EN Sakine Işık Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Nevin Uzuner Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Meral Karaman Department of Microbiology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Özkan Karaman Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Müge Kıray Department of Histology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey İlknur Kozanoğlu Department of Hematology, Başkent University, Adana, Turkey Hüsnü Alper Bağrıyanık Department of Histology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Zeynep Arıkan-Ayyıldız Department of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir, Turkey Melis Kartal Yandım Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, İzmir Institute of Technology, İzmir, Turkey Yusuf Baran Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, İzmir Institute of Technology, İzmir, Turkey 2016 07 22 2017 03 15 Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) can ameliorate a variety of lung diseases such as asthma, lung fibrosis, and acute lung injury by its anti-inflammatory and immunmodulatory effects. In this study, we developed a mouse model of bronchiolitis obliterans (BO) and evaluated the effects of the intraperitoneal administration of BMSCs on lung histopathology and cytokine levels. 25 BALB/c mice were divided into four groups; control group (Group I), BO developed and 1x106 BMSCs-injected group (Group II), non-BO, 1x106 BMSCs-injected group (Group III), and BO developed and saline-injected group (Group IV). Histological and immunohistochemical findings of the lung tissue and the migration of BMSCs to the lung were evaluated using light and confocal microscopy techniques. Confocal microscopy evaluations showed that there was no noteworthy amount of BMSCs in the lung tissue of group III while significant amount of BMSCs was detected in group II. Wall thicknesses of terminal bronchiole and periterminal bronchiolar collagen deposition were significantly lower in group II compared to the group IV (p<0.05). Furthermore, according to the immunohistochemical staining results, CD3, CD4, CD8, CD20, CD68 and neutrophil elastase positive immune cells of group II were stained more positive than group IV cells (p<0.05). IFN-γ IL-2 and TNF-α levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were significantly lower in group II compared to group IV (p<0.05). The findings of this study indicate that intraperitoneally administered BMSCs have potent effects on histopatological changes of the lung tissue and cytokine levels in the murine model of BO. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1012 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1012/736

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 16 3 2017 06 17 219 227 EN Mousalreza Hosseini Department of Gasteroenterology and Hepatology, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran Payman Shalchiantabrizi Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran Maliheh Dadgarmoghaddam Department of Community Medicine, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran Saeideh Ahmady-Simab The Vice Chancellor of Research, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran Azizollah Behjati Immonology Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran Masoumeh Salari Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran 2016 04 09 2017 02 22liation locale="en_US">Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery Department, Beijing Children’s Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China 2017 02 24 2017 07 23 In the current study, we sought to track the clinical course of children under control-based asthma management and focused on respiratory pathogens monitoring. We prospectively explored influencing factors for asthma control. 121 children with uncontrolled asthma between 3-14 years of age were recruited. Common respiratory pathogens were detected with pharyngeal swabs and serum aeroallergen-specific IgE was measured. Numeric asthma control scores, airway resistance and fractional concentrations of exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) were evaluated. A proper control-based asthma management plan was established by the study physician. Regular reviews were performed, with the above measurements retested at set time intervals. The proportion of patients achieving asthma control at 1 month and 3 months were 59% and 76% ; respectively (p=0.013). These patients exhibited significant improvement in numeric scores and lung function parameters. The prevalence of common respiratory pathogens did not significantly differ between reviews. The number of sensitized aeroallergens significantly increased with age (r=0.235, p=0.010). Children with a high visual analogue scale (VAS) score for asthma at baseline were less likely to achieve asthma control after 1 month, while those sensitized to more aeroallergens were more likely to achieve asthma control after 1 month (p=0.016 and 0.012). In summary, children with asthma showed significant improvements in control rates and lung function during control-based asthma management, independent of respiratory pathogens testing reults. Patients with high VAS scores and fewer sensitizations to aeroallergens had difficulty achieving short-term asthma control. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1328 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1328/801

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 17 1 2018 02 26 29 38 EN Jian-Qiang Huang Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China Xiao-Yang Chen Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China Fang Huang Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China Ji-Min Fan Department of Respiratory Medicine, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China Xiao-Wei Shi Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China Yan-Kai Ju Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Fujian Medical University, Quanzhou, China 2017 04 03 2017 09 04 Connexion 43 (Cx43), a gap junction protein, is expressed abundantly in the airway and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of asthma. However, the effects of blocking Cx43 in asthma remain unclear. We investigated the therapeutic effects of two specific Cx43 inhibitors (Gap26 and Gap27) on the development of allergic airway disease in mice. Allergic asthma was induced in BALB/c mice by sensitization and challenge with ovalbumin (OVA). Different doses of Cx43 inhibitors were administered by aerosol inhalation 1 h after OVA challenge on days 21 and 23. Airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), lung pathology, mucus production, and inflammatory cells and cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) were examined. We found that Gap26 significantly inhibited OVA-induced AHR, inflammatory cell infiltration surrounding the bronchia, mucus production, inflammatory cells and cytokines in BALF, and OVA-specific IgE in the serum in a dose-dependent manner. Gap27 showed effects similar to those of Gap26 in inhibiting inflammatory cytokine production in BALF. We conclude Cx43 inhibitor inhalation alleviates asthma featuresin mice and may be a promising therapy for clinical asthma.   https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1387 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1387/804

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 17 1 2018 02 26 39 46 EN Guihua Song Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China Yan Zhang Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China Kun Zhao Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China Mengmeng Sun Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China Pengju Cheng Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China Jing Wang Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou, China 2017 04 13 2017 09 18 Allergic asthma is a complex and chronic inflammatory airway disease. The thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) signaling pathway plays an important role in asthma. Xiaoqinglong Decoction (XQL) is the first choice to treat cold asthma in clinical settings. In this study, the role of the TSLP pathway in the onset of asthma and the protective mechanism of XQL were investigated. A total of 50 female mice were randomly divided into the following groups: the blank group (A), the model group (B), the XQL group (C), the dexamethasone group (D), and the XQL + dexamethasone group (E). Asthma was induced with ovalbumin, and corresponding drug intervention was carried out for 7 days, after which serum and lung tissue end points were analyzed. Serum interleukin 1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), and TSLP levels were higher in group B than in group A (p<0.05). However these levels were lower in group C and D than in group B (p<0.05), and there was no significant difference between groups C and D (p>0.05). Interestingly, these end points were significantly lower in group E than in groups C and D (p<0.05). Regarding pathologic changes, the inflammatory infiltrate in the lungs of groups C, D, and E was lower than that of group B, especially in group E. We conclude that the TSLP pathway plays an important role in the course of asthma, and can be used as an important target for asthma treatment; XQL may play a role in reducing inflammation and relieving asthma by regulating the TSLP signaling pathway. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1410 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1410/812

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 17 1 2018 02 26 47 55 EN Najmeh khosravianfar Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Jamshid Hadjati Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Afshin Namdar Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Roobina Boghozian Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Morteza Hafezi Department of Pathobiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mahboubeh Ashourpour Department of Pathobiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Nasim Kheshtchin Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Mahsa Banitalebi Department of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran Reza Mirzaei Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Seyed Alireza Razavi Department of Pathobiology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2017 02 26 2017 09 18 Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are capable of suppressing the immune response. 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) compared to other chemotherapy drugs have shown considerable decreases in the number of MDSCs without visible effects on T, B and natural killer cells, as well as dendritic cells (DCs). DC-based vaccines considered to be appropriate candidates for cancer immunotherapy. However, due to the presence of various factors like MDSCs in tumor microenvironment, DC vaccine cannot effectively perform its function. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of low doses of 5-FU on the efficacy of DC-based vaccines in preventing and treating of melanoma tumor model. This research was performed on 28 melanoma tumor bearing C57BL/6 female mice. The mice were randomly divided to 4 groups, group 1 is control population while group 2 and 3 were treated with DC vaccine and 5-FU respectively and group 4 was treated with both DC Vaccine and 5-FU. The mice survival, tumor growth rate, number of MDSC and CD8+/ CD107a+ T cells in mice spleen were evaluated in each group with maximum result in group 4. Our results revealed that combination of DC vaccine and 5-FU reduced number of MDSCs (3%) and also tumor growth rate(10%)(p<0.05) and increased mice survival (70%) and increased CD8+ /CD107a+ T cells (25%). This study have shown that combinational therapy with DC vaccine improved immunity in tumor mice compared to the therapy consisting of DC vaccine or 5-FU only. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1331 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1331/813

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 17 1 2018 02 26 56 67 EN Theodoros Eleftheriadis Department of Nephrology, Medical School, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece Georgios Pissas Department of Nephrology, Medical School, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece Vassilios Liakopoulos Department of Nephrology, Medical School, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece Ioannis Stefanidis Department of Nephrology, Medical School, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece 2017 05 06 2017 07 24 Indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO) suppresses T-cell function at least in part by altering cell metabolism. Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) increases upon T-cell activation and alters cell metabolism favoring their differentiation to effector cells. The effect of IDO on HIF-1α expression and activity was evaluated. For this purpose, mixed lymphocyte reaction (MLR) was performed using the IDO inhibitor 1-DL-methyl-tryptophan and the p53 inhibitor pifithrin-α. L-tryptophan degradation and cell proliferation were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, whereas the expression of proteins of interest by western blotting. IDO inhibited cell proliferation, and in MLR-derived T-cells increased HIF-1α and p53, whereas it decreased c-Myc. Inhibition of p53 abrogated IDO-induced HIF-1α upregulation. IDO increased the p53 transcriptional targets p21 and TP53-induced glycolysis and apoptosis regulator. The transcriptional targets of both HIF-1α and c-Myc, hexokinase II and lactate dehydrogenase-A were decreased by IDO. Phosphorylated pyruvate dehydrogenase remained unaffected indicating that pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase, a transcriptional target of HIF-1α, is not affected by IDO. In human alloreactive T-cells, IDO up-regulates HIF-1α, by inducing p53 overexpression. However, HIF-1α remains transcriptionally inactive. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1454 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1454/814

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502 17 1 2018 02 26 68 77 EN Hadi Bazzazi Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran Mehrdad Aghaei Golestan Rheumatology Research Center (GRRC), Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran Ali Memarian Stem Cell Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran Hossein Asgarian-Omran Immunogenetics Research Center, School of Medicine, Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, Sari, Iran Nasser Behnampour Public Health Department, Faculty of Health, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran Yaghoub Yazdani Infectious Diseases Research Center, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran 2017 05 22 2017 10 25 The Th17, Th1 and dual Th17/Th1 cells are important players in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease. To assess their roles, the frequency and impact of these cells were investigated in patients with different disease activity. In 14 new cases and 41 established RA patients in comparison with 22 healthy controls, the percentages of Th17, Th1 and dual Th17/Th1 cells were determined by flow-cytometry and their correlations were investigated with disease activity score (DAS28). Moreover, serum levels of IL-6 and IL-17 as inducer and functional cytokines for Th17 were investigated. Finally, serum levels of anti citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA) and rheumatoid factor (RF) were assessed. Percentage of Th17 cells in RA patients were increased in comparison with healthy controls (p<0.01). In correlation with this finding, IL-17 and IL-6 cytokines in RA patients also increased (p<0.01). The Th1 cells in RA patients were less than healthy group (p<0.05) and showed negative correlation with disease activity (r=-0.328, p<0.01). Dual Th17/Th1 cell only in new cases of RA were more than healthy control groups (p<0.01). The Th1/Th17 ratio in RA patients is statistically different with healthy control group (p<0.01) and it has negative correlation with disease activity (r=-264, p<0.05). The levels of ACPA and RF were increased with disease progression. Decreasing of Th1/Th17 ratio in RA patient suggested a new paradigm in the field of autoimmune disease and indicated that imbalance or plasticity between these subsets can be important in progress, diagnosis and therapy of RA disease. https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/view/1475 https://ijaai.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijaai/article/download/1475/805

Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology 1735-1502