AUTHOR=Zhou Yuhang , Luo Jianming 

TITLE=Relationship between Iron deposition and T lymphocytes in children with β-thalassemia with haematopoietic stem cell transplantation

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pediatrics

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pediatrics/articles/10.3389/fped.2022.939157

DOI=10.3389/fped.2022.939157

ISSN=2296-2360

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>β-Thalassemia cellular immunity is associated with iron overload. However, the relationship between varying degrees of iron deposition and T cell immune recovery after allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT) in children remain unclear.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>A retrospective analysis was performed on 84 children with β-Thalassemia undergoing sibling allo-HSCT. According to the degrees of hepatic iron deposition, patients were divided into four classes. T lymphocyte counts were measured. Hepatic iron deposition was assessed by T2* MRI. Epstein–Barr virus and cytomegalovirus infection rates and graft-vs.-host disease incidence were recorded.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Immune recovery after allo-HSCT was compared between the two groups. Normal vs. mild group: CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3, and 6 months (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05), CD3 and CD8 cells were higher at 3 and 6 months, and 1 year in normal group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). Normal vs. moderate group: CD3 and CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3 and 6 months, and 1 year (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05), CD8 cells were higher at 1 and 3 months, and 1 year in normal group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). Normal vs. severe group: CD3, CD4 and CD8 cell at 1, 3 and 6 months, and 1 year in normal group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). Mild vs. moderate group: CD3, CD4 and CD8 cells were higher at 1 month in mild group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). Mild vs. severe group: CD4 cells were higher at 1, 3 and 6 month, and 1 year (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05), CD3 and CD8 cells were higher at 1 month in mild group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). Moderate vs. severe group: CD4 cells were higher at 3 months (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05), CD8 cells were higher at 6 months in moderate group (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05). The hepatic T2* values were positively correlated with CD3, CD4 and CD8 cells. The infection rates of Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus were significantly different among the groups (<italic>P</italic> &lt; 0.05).</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>Iron deposition affects immune recovery of T lymphocytes after allo-HSCT in children with β-thalassemia. The lower the levels of iron deposition, the greater the CD4 cell count.</p></sec>