Detection and significance of Th17 and Treg cells in patients with acute coronary syndrome

Objective:To study the changes and significance of Th17 cell and regulatory T cell in patients with acute coronary syndrome(ACS).Methods:51 patients with acute coronary syndrome,25 patients with stable angina(SA) and 27 healthy control subjects were consecutively enrolled.The percentage of Th17 cells and Treg cells,mRNA expression of key transcription factors(RORγt,STAT3,Foxp3) and plasma IL-17A in these patients were measured by flow cytometry,real-time quantitative PCR and ELISA.Results:①The percentage of Th17 cells,mRNA expression of RORγt and STAT3 increased significantly in ACS group compared with SA group and controls(P0.01);②The percentage of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ Treg cells and CD4+Foxp3+ Treg cells,mRNA expression of Foxp3 and plasma TGF-β1 were significantly lower in ACS group than in SA group and controls(P0.01),while there was no significant difference in percentage of CD4+CD25+ Treg cell among 3 groups.Conclusion:The imbalance of Th17/Treg exists in ACS patients,which may contribute to plaque destabilization.