ABSTRACT

Objective:

Behçet's disease (BD) is a chronic, multisystemic vasculitis of unknown etiology. Specific criteria to assess the activity of the disease, which has a course with remissions and relapses, have not been found; thus the evaluation of the activity of the disease is mainly based on the clinical findings. Therefore, there is a need for laboratory markers that can be correlated with clinical activity. In this report, we aimed to research parameters that may be used as activation marker in BD.

Methods:

Expressions of CD3, CD4, CD8, CD19, HLA-DR, TCR gd, TCR ab, coexpressions of CD3/CD25, CD19/CD25, CD19/HLA-DR, CD3/TCR gd, TCR gd/CD25, TCR gd/CD40L, TCR gd/CD 69, CD3/ TCR ab, TCR ab/ CD25, TCR ab/ CD40L, and TCR ab/CD69 were evaluated in active and inactive Behçet's patients. CD4/CD8 ratio was calculated and compared between the two groups.

Results:

TCR gd was found to be 5.064±2.079% in the active group, whereas it was 8.347±3.771% in the inactive group; there was a statistically significant difference between these data (p<0.01). TCR gd/CD40L expression was found to be 0.337±0.298% in the active group, and 2.165±1.896% in the inactive group; which showed a statistically significant difference between these data (p<0.01). No significant differences were obtained for the other parameters between the two groups.

Conclusion:

The findings of this study support that although the gd T cells play a very important role in BD, more detailed studies needed.