Frontiers in Neurology (Jun 2022)

Increased Frequency of Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells in Myasthenia Gravis After Immunotherapy

  • Yan Wang,
  • Chong Yan,
  • Chong Yan,
  • Caixia Su,
  • Ying Wang,
  • Sushan Luo,
  • Sushan Luo,
  • Jun Lu,
  • Jun Lu,
  • Chongbo Zhao,
  • Chongbo Zhao,
  • Gan Zhao,
  • Jianying Xi,
  • Jianying Xi

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2022.902384
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 13

Abstract

Read online

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are a population of myeloid progenitor cells with immunoregulatory functions and their role in myasthenia gravis (MG) was unknown. In this study, we investigated the phenotypic and functional alterations of MDSCs in MG before and after immunotherapy. The frequency of MDSCs significantly increased and negatively correlated to that of Th1 or Th17 cells after immunotherapy. MDSCs from untreated patients with MG showed an impaired suppression of IFN-γ production in T-cells and improved immunosuppressive function was identified after immunotherapy. The MFI of Arg-1 in MDSCs also increased after immunotherapy. These findings suggested the functional difference in MDSCs before and after immunotherapy, and MDSCs might play a role in disease remission.

Keywords