Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine
Abstract Text:
Introduction: We aimed to determine the relative and absolute numbers of lymphocyte subpopulations in Korean children according to gender and age.
Methods: We recruited patients with no evidence of any infectious, immunologic, or hematologic disorders from 3 hospitals, grouped into two groups according to age: group 1 (5 – 9 years) and group 2 (10 – 17 years). The lymphocyte subpopulations were analyzed by flow cytometry with the EuroFlow Primary ImmunoDeficiency Orientation Tube. Lymphocytes were divided into three major groups: T cells, B cells, and NK cells. T cells were divided into CD4+ T cells, CD8+ T cells, and CD4-CD8- T cells and further subdivided according to the maturation stage into naïve, CM/TM, EM, and TD T cells. B cells were divided into GC cells, unswitched and immunoglobulin-switched memory B cells, and plasma cells.
Results: Total lymphocyte count and B cells, especially pre-GC B cells, in group 1 were higher than those in group 2. On the other hand, the memory CD4+ T cells (CM/TM and EM) increased in group 2. The higher B cells and CD8+CD27- TD T cells in males were observed as those in females. Inter-laboratory differences were found in most subpopulations of T cells and B cells.
Conclusion: We provided the relative and absolute numbers of lymphocyte subpopulations in Korean children, which could be used as reference ranges to monitor and predict the immune status in the pediatric population. Age, gender, and laboratory-related factors might influence the distribution of lymphocyte subpopulations.
