Effect of atorvastatin on the expression of programmed cell death 4 in human CD4+T lymphocytes / 实用医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the influence of atorvastatin (Lipitor) on the expression of programmed cell death 4 (PDCD4) in human CD4+T lymphocytes in vitro. Methods Human CD4+T cells obtained from healthy individuals were activated with PHA and treated with atorvastatin. The mRNA and protein expression levels of PDCD4 were detected by real-time PCR and western-blot respectively. Results The stimulation of PHA obviously increased the mRNA and protein expression of PDCD4 and the secretion of those serum cytokines. The expression of PDCD4 and the production of serum TNF-α were significantly decreased, whereas the serum levels of IL-10 were significantly increased after treated by different concentration of atorvastatin. The serum secretion of TNF-α was positive correlation with the expression of PDCD4 through the linear related analysis (r=0.782, P<0.01), and the secretion of IL-10 was negative correlation with the expression of PDCD4 (r=-0.653, P<0.05). Conclusion The anti-inflammatory effects of atorvastatin are mediated by down regulating the expression of PDCD4 in CD4+T cells.