Acute psychological stress increases peripheral blood CD3+CD56+ natural killer T cells in healthy men: possible implications for the development and treatment of allergic and autoimmune disorders

TY - JOUR

T1 - Acute psychological stress increases peripheral blood CD3+CD56+ natural killer T cells in healthy men: possible implications for the development and treatment of allergic and autoimmune disorders

AU - Atanackovic, Djordje

AU - Nowottne, Ulrike

AU - Freier, Eva

AU - Weber, Cora Stefanie

AU - Meyer, Sabrina

AU - Bartels, Katrin

AU - Hildebrandt, York

AU - Cao, Yanran

AU - Kröger, Nicolaus-Martin

AU - Brunner-Weinzierl, Monika Christine

AU - Bokemeyer, Carsten

AU - Deter, Hans-Christian

PY - 2013/7/1

Y1 - 2013/7/1

N2 - Acute psychological stress has primarily been investigated regarding its effects on conventional lymphocytes such as natural killer (NK) cells and CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells. However, it might be important to focus on more "specialized" lymphocyte subsets, playing a role, for instance, in allergic conditions and autoimmunity, to identify links between stress, the immune system and somatic diseases. Using flow cytometry we determined frequencies of circulating T helper (Th)1-type (CD226(+)) and Th2-type (CRTH2(+)) T cells, γδ T cells, conventional CD56(+) natural killer T (NKT) cells and invariant NKT cells (iNKT) in healthy young males (N = 31; median age 26 years) undergoing a laboratory computer-based stressor lasting 12 min. We found that acute psychological stress induced a prolonged increase in CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells expressing a Th2 phenotype. We also detected an acute increase in CD4(-) and CD8(-) double negative γδ T cells. Finally, we found that the well-known increase in NK cells under stressful conditions was paralleled by a significant increase in numbers of conventional CD56(+) NKT cells. In contrast, numbers of iNKT was not altered by stress. This study adds further evidence to a psychoneuroimmunological model proposing that under stressful conditions certain lymphocyte subsets, including iNKT and less mature T cells, are retained in lymphoid tissues while antigen-experienced effector-type T cells with a Th2 phenotype, γδ T cells and conventional CD56(+) NKT cells are mobilized into the peripheral blood. We suggest that in the case of frequent stress exposure, this might result in the promotion of, for example, allergic conditions.

AB - Acute psychological stress has primarily been investigated regarding its effects on conventional lymphocytes such as natural killer (NK) cells and CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells. However, it might be important to focus on more "specialized" lymphocyte subsets, playing a role, for instance, in allergic conditions and autoimmunity, to identify links between stress, the immune system and somatic diseases. Using flow cytometry we determined frequencies of circulating T helper (Th)1-type (CD226(+)) and Th2-type (CRTH2(+)) T cells, γδ T cells, conventional CD56(+) natural killer T (NKT) cells and invariant NKT cells (iNKT) in healthy young males (N = 31; median age 26 years) undergoing a laboratory computer-based stressor lasting 12 min. We found that acute psychological stress induced a prolonged increase in CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells expressing a Th2 phenotype. We also detected an acute increase in CD4(-) and CD8(-) double negative γδ T cells. Finally, we found that the well-known increase in NK cells under stressful conditions was paralleled by a significant increase in numbers of conventional CD56(+) NKT cells. In contrast, numbers of iNKT was not altered by stress. This study adds further evidence to a psychoneuroimmunological model proposing that under stressful conditions certain lymphocyte subsets, including iNKT and less mature T cells, are retained in lymphoid tissues while antigen-experienced effector-type T cells with a Th2 phenotype, γδ T cells and conventional CD56(+) NKT cells are mobilized into the peripheral blood. We suggest that in the case of frequent stress exposure, this might result in the promotion of, for example, allergic conditions.

KW - Adult

KW - Antigens, CD3

KW - Antigens, CD56

KW - Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte

KW - Autoimmune Diseases

KW - Blood Pressure

KW - CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes

KW - Heart Rate

KW - Humans

KW - Hypersensitivity

KW - Lymphocyte Subsets

KW - Male

KW - Natural Killer T-Cells

KW - Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, gamma-delta

KW - Stress, Psychological

KW - Th2 Cells

U2 - 10.3109/10253890.2013.777702

DO - 10.3109/10253890.2013.777702

M3 - SCORING: Journal article

C2 - 23425210

VL - 16

SP - 421

EP - 428

JO - STRESS

JF - STRESS

SN - 1025-3890

IS - 4

ER -