1- Student Research Committee, Medical school, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran. 2- Rheumatology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. 3- Medical Biology Research Center, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran. 4- Department of Immunology, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran , mtaghad@gmail.com
Abstract: (4984 Views)
Background and Aim: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease. It seems that the function of regulatory T cells (Tregs) is compromised in RA. Foxp3 is a critical transcription factor of these cells. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship of vitamin D plasma level with Foxp3 gene expression in the patients with RA. Material and Methods: 18 untreated RA patients and 41 healthy people participated in this study. Plasma levels of vitamin D were measured by competitive ELISA method. Foxp3 gene expression was also determined by using realtime PCR technique. Results: The expression of Foxp3 gene was significantly lower in RA patients compared to that in the healthy controls (p<0.001) .There was no significant relationship between vitamin D plasma levels with the rate of Foxp3 gene expression. Conclusion: We found low levels of vitamin D could not affect the expression of Foxp3 gene. It seems that vitamin D deficiency cannot be considered as an effective environmental factor in the pathogenesis of RA. Keywords: Vitamin D, Foxp3, Rheumatoid arthritis.