Circulating NK cells and their subsets in Behçet's disease.

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Autoinflammatory Diseases
• Cell Biology

Background:

• Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic autoinflammatory disorder with complex immune system involvement.
• Natural killer (NK) cells are crucial innate immune cells implicated in various autoimmune and inflammatory conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of Behçet's disease activity and azathioprine therapy on peripheral blood NK cell populations and their subsets.
• To analyze the functional potential of NK cells in BD patients compared to healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• Surface phenotyping of NK cell subsets (CD56Dim/CD56Bright) using CD27 and CD16 markers in 60 BD patients and 60 healthy controls.
• Assessment of NK cell functional markers including IFN-γ, granzyme B, perforin, and CD107a expression.
• Statistical analysis including multivariate linear regression to identify predictors of NK cell depletion.

Main Results:

• Peripheral blood NK cells and their CD56Dim/CD56Bright subsets were significantly depleted in BD patients, especially those with active disease.
• Azathioprine therapy was also associated with significant NK cell depletion.
• CD56Dim NK cells demonstrated higher cytotoxic potential (perforin, granzyme B) and degranulation marker expression (CD107a) in BD patients compared to controls.

Conclusions:

• Both active Behçet's disease and azathioprine treatment independently reduce peripheral blood NK cell counts.
• NK cell dysfunction may contribute to the pathogenesis of Behçet's disease.
• Further research is warranted to explore the therapeutic implications of these findings.