[Lymphocyte subsets of peripheral blood in patients with sarcoidosis]

Cytofluorometric analysis of lymphocyte subsets was performed in the peripheral blood samples from fifteen sarcoidosis patients with uveitis as well as normal controls. The percentage of T cells (CD3+) was significantly decreased, whereas that of B cells (CD19+) was markedly increased in patients with sarcoidosis compared to controls. Natural killer cells (CD8+CD57+) as well as activated T cells (CD3+HLA-DR+) were significantly increased in patients with sarcoidosis. The percentage of the Leu 1-B cells and the ratio of Leu 1-B/B were significantly higher in sarcoidosis patients with respect to controls. Moreover, the ratio of Leu 1-B/B was significantly correlated with the serum level of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) in sarcoidosis. Therefore, it is considered that the Leu 1-B/B value could be a useful indicator not only for the activity but also for the diagnosis of sarcoidosis. No significant difference was found in any subset between the patients with active uveitis and patients with inactive uveitis.