Abstract
Interleukin-7 (IL-7) is a stromal factor that is crucial for the development of T lymphocytes in humans and mice, and also B lymphocytes in mice. IL-7 can act as a T cell growth factor as well as a critical anti-apoptotic survival factor. The essential non-redundant role of this cytokine for T cell development in vivo is indicated by the phenotype of murine knockout models as well as by humans with a T-B+NK+ form of severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) resulting from mutations in IL-7 receptor alpha chain. IL-7 deficiency has now been found in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, a finding that relates not only to the T-lymphocyte status in this disease but also to the ability of patients with rheumatoid arthritis to recover from therapy-induced lymphopenia.
MeSH terms
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Antirheumatic Agents / therapeutic use
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Arthritis, Rheumatoid / blood*
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Arthritis, Rheumatoid / drug therapy
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Autoimmune Diseases / blood*
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Autoimmune Diseases / drug therapy
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Bone Marrow / metabolism
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Bone Marrow Transplantation
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CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / pathology*
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Female
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Gene Rearrangement, T-Lymphocyte
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Humans
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Interleukin-7 / biosynthesis
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Interleukin-7 / blood
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Interleukin-7 / deficiency*
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Lymphocyte Depletion*
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Lymphopenia / chemically induced*
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Male
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Receptors, Interleukin-7 / deficiency
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Receptors, Interleukin-7 / physiology
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Severe Combined Immunodeficiency / genetics
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Severe Combined Immunodeficiency / metabolism
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Stromal Cells / metabolism
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / antagonists & inhibitors
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / physiology
Substances
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Antirheumatic Agents
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Interleukin-7
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Receptors, Interleukin-7
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Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
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interleukin-7 receptor, alpha chain