Abstract:

Objective To explore the changes of NK cells and  the expression levels of their activated and inhibitory receptors in peripheral blood of the patients
with systematic lupus erythematosus (SLE) before and after treatment of glucocorticoid combined with immunodepressant,and to clarify its action mechanism on SLE.Methods 26 patients with new onset SLE and 16 healthy controls were selected.The expression levels  of NK cells,their activated and inhibitory receptors i
n peripheral blood in two groups were detected before treatment, 4 and 12 weeks after treatment by flow cytometry.Results  Compared with control group,the
ratio of CD3－CD56+NK cells of the patients with SLE and the expression levels of KIR2DL3+,KIR3DL1+,NKG2A+ NK in SLE patients group before treatment were significantly decreased(P<0.05);the expression levels of NKG2C+，NKP30+，NKP46+, and the ratios of IFN-γ+ NK cells were significantly increased(P<0.001).Compared with before treatment,the ratios of CD3－CD56+NK cells in the patients with SLE 4 and 12 weeks after treatment were significantly inc
reased(P<0.05）;the expression levels of NKG2C+,NKP30+, and NKP46+in the patients with SLE 4 weeks after treatment were significantly decreased(P<0.05).4 weeks after treatment,the expression  levels of KIR2DL3+,KIR3DL1+,and NKG2A+  were significantly increased compared with before treatment(P<0.05).12
weeks after treatment,the expression  levels of KIR3DL1+,CD158a+,CD158b+, and NKG2A+ were significantly increased compared with before treatment(P<0.05),and the ratios of IFN-γ+CD３－ CD56+ NK cells in the patients with SLE 4 and 12 weeks after treatment were significantly decreased compared with before treatment(P<0.001).Conclusion The changes of the NK cells and its receptors may be involved in the pathogenesis of SLE.Glucocorticoid combined with immunodepressant may play the therapeutic effect  by regulating the expression of NK cells and their receptors.

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Key words: systemic lupus erythematosus, natural killer cells, interferon-&gamma