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Publication Date

Spring 2015

Degree Type

Thesis - Campus Access Only

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Biological Sciences

Advisor

Tzvia Abramson

Keywords

Crohn's disease, flow cytometry, inflammatory bowel disease, memory B cell, plasmablast, trafficking receptor

Subject Areas

Biology; Immunology; Medicine

Abstract

The incidence of pediatric Crohn's disease (CD), an autoimmune intestinal inflammatory disease, is increasing. B cells infiltrate and accumulate within the gut mucosa, and lymphocyte trafficking may play a role. However, B cell trafficking in pediatric CD remains understudied. We hypothesized that in these patients circulating IgA+ plasmablasts (PBs) would increase in frequency, express trafficking receptors (TRs) associated with gut homing, and relate to disease severity.

Peripheral blood samples were obtained from pediatric CD patients (n=11) in remission or with mild or severe disease, then compared with samples from healthy adult (n=11) and pediatric donors (n=2). Using multicolor flow cytometry, IgA+ PBs and IgA+ memory B cells (MBCs) were analyzed for TRs.

IgA+ PBs were increased in pediatric CD patients. In patients in remission, IgA+/α4β7+/CCR9+ PBs were only slightly lower in frequency, but IgA+/α4β7+/CCR9+ MBCs were significantly lower in frequency compared with HDs. In patients with mild CD, the frequency of IgA+ MBCs co-expressing α4β7+/CCR10+ was significantly increased compared with HDs. Future studies with increased sample size can potentially apply this information to develop less invasive diagnostic and monitoring strategies for CD patients.

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