Introduction: CD4+T cells express K2P5.1 (TWIK-related acid-sensitive potassium channel 2 (TASK2); KCNK5), a member of the two-pore domain potassium channel family, which has been shown to influence T cell effector functions. Recently, it was shown that K2P5.1 is upregulated upon (autoimmune) T cell stimulation. The aim of this study was to correlate expression levels of K2P5.1 on T cells from patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) to disease activity in these patients.Methods: Expression levels of K2P5.1 were measured by RT-PCR in the peripheral blood of 58 patients with RA and correlated with disease activity parameters (C-reactive protein levels, erythrocyte sedimentation rates, disease activity score (DAS28) scores). Twenty patients undergoing therapy change were followed-up for six months. Additionally, synovial fluid and synovial biopsies were investigated for T lymphocytes expressing K2P5.1.Results: K2P5.1 expression levels in CD4+T cells show a strong correlation to DAS28 scores in RA patients. Similar correlations were found for serological inflammatory parameters (erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein). In addition, K2P5.1 expression levels of synovial fluid-derived T cells are higher compared to peripheral blood T cells. Prospective data in individual patients show a parallel behaviour of K2P5.1 expression to disease activity parameters during a longitudinal follow-up for six months.Conclusions: Disease activity in RA patients correlates strongly with K2P5.1 expression levels in CD4+T lymphocytes in the peripheral blood in cross-sectional as well as in longitudinal observations. Further studies are needed to investigate the exact pathophysiological mechanisms and to evaluate the possible use of K2P5.1 as a potential biomarker for disease activity and differential diagnosis. © 2011 Bittner et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
CITATION STYLE
Bittner, S., Bobak, N., Feuchtenberger, M., Herrmann, A. M., Göbel, K., Kinne, R. W., … Meuth, S. G. (2011). Expression of K2P5.1 potassium channels on CD4+T lymphocytes correlates with disease activity in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Arthritis Research and Therapy, 13(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/ar3245
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