@article{APS9274,
author = {Shang-xue YAN and Xiao-mei DENG and Qing-tong WANG and Xiao-jing SUN and Wei WEI},
title = {Prednisone treatment inhibits the differentiation of B lymphocytes into plasma cells in MRL/MpSlac-lpr mice},
journal = {Acta Pharmacologica Sinica},
volume = {36},
number = {11},
year = {2017},
keywords = {},
abstract = {Aim: A number of evidence shows that the differentiation of B lymphocytes into plasma cells plays an important role in lupus pathogenesis. In this study we investigated how prednisone, a classical therapeutic drug for autoimmune diseases, regulated plasma cell differentiation in MRL/MpSlac-lpr mice.
Methods: MRL/lpr mice were treated with prednisone (2.5 or 5 mg·kg-1·d-1, ig) for 13 weeks, and the proteinuria levels and survival times were monitored. After the mice were euthanized, blood sample, spleen and thymus were collected. The serum levels of anti-dsDNA antibody, anti-nuclear antibody, IL-21, and IL-10 were detected using ELISA kits. Subsets of splenic B and T lymphocytes were quantified with flow cytometry. Transcription factor Blimp-1 and Bcl-6 expression was determined using qPCR and Western blot.
Results: Prednisone treatment dose-dependently attenuated the lupus symptoms in MRL/lpr mice with decreased proteinuria levels, prolonged survival times, decreased serum anti-nuclear antibody levels, and reduced spleen and thymus indices. Prednisone treatment also significantly decreased the elevated percentages of plasma cells and plasma cell precursors, decreased the percentages of activated T cells, and increased the frequency of CD4+CD62L+ cells, demonstrated that decreased anti-nuclear antibodies and improvements in lupus symptoms were associated with decreased plasma cells. Furthermore, prednisone treatment decreased serum IL-21 and IL-10 levels and reduced the expression of splenic Blimp-1 and Bcl-6 (two key regulatory factors for plasma cell differentiation) in MRL/lpr mice.
Conclusion: Prednisone treatment restricts B lymphocyte differentiation into plasma cells in MRL/lpr mice, which may be correlated with the inhibition of IL-21 production and the restoration of the balance between Blimp-1 and Bcl-6.},
issn = {1745-7254}, url = {http://www.chinaphar.com/article/view/9274}
}