T REGULATORY CELL FREQUENCY IN IRAQI RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disease leading to the destruction of joint structure and tissue surrounding the joints and degrading their function. It is widely recognized that T-regulatory are important in preventing autoimmune disease and are likely to contribute to the resolution of inflammation and in general, increasing the Treg cell number or enhancing Treg cell suppressive function may prove to be beneficial in the suppression of autoimmune diseases, including arthritis. Treg cells were shown to be protective against arthritis, since the transfer of CD4+ CD25+ Treg cells inhibited arthritis, while the deletion of Foxp3+ Treg cells resulted in exacerbation of the disease.This study planned to determine the frequencies of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells in development and severity of RA in Iraqi patients. In conclusion, reduction of the Treg cells in patients with biological therapy than control group.