T-cell responses to viral, bacterial and protozoan antigens in rheumatoid inflammation. Selective migration of T cells to synovial tissue.

OBJECTIVE

To identify any preferential or selective migration of T-cell specificities to inflamed tissues of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients.

METHODS

Lymphocytes from peripheral blood (PB) and synovial tissue (ST) were isolated from RA patients and stimulated with a panel of crude antigen preparations from 18 bacterial, protozoan and viral sources. Proliferative responses of the T lymphocytes to each antigen and group of antigens were compared in PB and ST. Antigen-specific T-cell clones were developed and their migratory capacities towards synovial chemokines were compared.

RESULTS

ST-derived T cells showed a small but significantly higher stimulation index (SI) to the group of intestinal bacteria compared with PB T cells. Conversely, responses of ST-derived T cells to Acanthamoeba polyphaga (AP) were both profoundly and significantly lower compared with PB-derived T cells. The viral antigens as a whole gave comparable reactivities in blood and ST. The migratory capacity of AP-specific T-cell clones towards chemokines produced by ST was profoundly poorer compared with Campylobacter jejuni- and herpes simplex virus-specific T-cell clones.

CONCLUSIONS

The results indicate a selective migration of T cells of given specificities to the inflamed rheumatoid synovium.