Programmed death-1 (PD-1) critically regulates T cell tolerance, but the role of PD-1/PD-L1 in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients remains unclear. In this study, we investigated circulating PD-1+/PD-L1+ T cells and their changes during the partial remission (PR) phase in T1D. 79 patients with T1D and 21 normal controls were enrolled, and grouped into 4 groups based on remission phase. The percentage of circulating PD-1+/PD-L1+ T cells, Treg, IL-35-Treg and Breg cells was analyzed by flow cytometry. The results showed that the expression of PD-1 in CD4+/CD8+ T cells was significantly decreased at the onset of T1D, and recovered to a high level during the remission phase. The honeymoon phase was accompanied by the increase of PD-1 expression, suggesting that PD-1 may be a new target for diagnosis and intervention.

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Disclosure

T. Zhong: None. X. Li: None. Z. Zhou: None.

© 2019 by the American Diabetes Association.
2019
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