Tγδ Cells and their Subsets in Blood and Synovial Tissue from Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

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Abstract
We have examined the frequencies of Tγδ cells in blood, synovial fluids, and synovial membranes of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and in blood from age‐matched controls Immunocyto‐chemical and immunohistochemical techniques were used with monoclonal antibodies BB3 and A13 to define a major and minor blood subset of Tγδ cells respectively. Together, these antibodies identify the majority (if not all) of the peripheral blood Tγδ cells.Significantly lower levels of Tγδ cells were found in the blood of RA patients compared with controls, whilst higher but not significant numbers were found in the synovial fluids or paired samples Scattered Tγδ cells were found only in some synovial membranes with A distribution similar to the Tγδ cells Analysis of the two different Tγδ ‐cell subsets indicated a ratio of BB3 to A13 of about 5:1 in control and RA blood. However, this ratio was less than 1:1 in the RA synovial fluids and membranes. The migratory nature of the A13+ cells could account for their predominance in these sites the possible pathological significance of these cells in the rheumatoid synovial fluid and synovial membranes is discussed.