Usage of TCR-Vβ families in CD4+ T cells
We examined the TCR-Vβ family distribution through flow cytometric
analysis to detect any skewed distributions in the TCR repertoire in
patients with AIN. A summary of the normal range of the distribution of
24 TCR-Vβ families, estimated from 22 control subjects, is presented inTable II . When the usage of 24 TCR-Vβ families was compared
between control subjects and patients with AIN, the TCR-Vβ 9 and 17
families in CD4+ T cells significantly increased in
patients with AIN (p = 0.0252 and p = 0.0361,
respectively) (Figure 2 ).
Usage of TCR Vβ families in conventional T cells and
Tregs
Next, we compared the usage of Tregs and conventional T cells between
the control group and AIN group. As shown in Figure 3 , the
usage of TCR-Vβ 9, 17, 20, and 21.3 families in Tregs, and that of the
TCR-Vβ 17 family in conventional T cells were significantly increased in
patients with AIN. There was no significant difference noted in the
remaining TCR-Vβ families between patients with AIN and control
subjects.