Influence of CD4 or CD8 deficiency on collagen-induced arthritis

The role of T cells in the mouse collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model for rheumatoid arthritis is not clarified, and different results have been reported concerning the role of CD4 and CD8 T cells. To address this issue, we have investigated B10.Q mice deficient for CD4 or CD8. The mice lacking CD4 were found to be less susceptible to disease, but not completely resistant, whereas the CD8 deficiency had no significant impact on the disease. No difference in the development of late occurring relapses was noted. Interestingly, the CD4-deficient mice had a severely reduced response to the glycosylated form of the immunodominant type II collagen (CII) 256-270 peptide whereas the response to the non-glycosylated peptide was not significantly different. Furthermore, CD4-deficient mice had lower antibody responses to CII, explaining the lower disease susceptibility. In comparison with previously reported results, it is apparent that the lack of CD4 molecules has a different impact on CIA if present on different genetic backgrounds, findings that could possibly be related to the occurrence of different disease pathways of CIA in different mouse strains.