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Intravital Imaging of Intraepithelial Lymphocytes in Murine Small Intestine
08:00

Intravital Imaging of Intraepithelial Lymphocytes in Murine Small Intestine

Published on: June 24, 2019

Intraepithelial gammadelta+ lymphocytes: a comparative study between celiac disease, small intestinal bacterial

José Maria Remes-Troche1, Karina Adames, Antonia I Castillo-Rodal

  • 1Department of Gastroenterology, Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán, Facultad de Medicina, UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico. chemaremes@hotmail.com

Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology
|August 2, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Increased gammadelta+ intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) are found in celiac disease (CD) and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), but not irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This suggests gammadelta+ IELs may play a role in bacterial infections.

Area of Science:

  • Gastroenterology
  • Immunology
  • Intestinal Pathology

Background:

  • Intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) phenotyping is crucial in intestinal pathology.
  • Celiac disease (CD) is characterized by a marked increase in gammadelta+ IELs.
  • Knowledge regarding gammadelta+ IELs in other intestinal conditions is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To quantify IELs, specifically the gammadelta+ subset, in duodenal biopsies.
  • To compare gammadelta+ IEL percentages in CD, small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

Main Methods:

  • Flow cytometry analysis of duodenal mucosal biopsies from 12 CD, 8 SIBO, and 10 IBS patients.
  • Isolated intraepithelial cells were labeled using monoclonal antibodies (CD103, CD3, CD7R, CD45RO, TcR gammadelta).
  • Total and subset IEL counts were expressed as percentages.

Main Results:

  • No significant difference in total IELs percentage among IBS (16.7%), SIBO (25.4%), and CD (26%) patients.
  • Significantly higher percentages of gammadelta+ IELs were observed in CD (15.7%) and SIBO (14.6%) patients compared to IBS (4.1%) patients (P<0.05).
  • No significant difference in gammadelta+ IELs was found between CD and SIBO patients (P=0.6).

Conclusions:

  • Increased gammadelta+ IEL density is characteristic but not exclusive to CD.
  • A similar increase in gammadelta+ IELs was noted in SIBO patients.
  • The gammadelta+ IEL population may be integral to combating intestinal bacterial infections.
Abstract

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