To identify the T lymphocytes that mediate disease in rheumatoid arthritis (RA).
A panel of monoclonal antibodies reactive with T cell receptor (TCR) V beta gene products was used to analyze the RA T cell repertoire.
Of 5 TCR V beta gene products studied, only V beta 17-positive T cells were increased in peripheral blood and synovial fluid (SF) from RA patients, compared with controls (P < 0.01 and P = 0.0006, respectively). Thirty-one percent of the 49 RA SF samples and none of the 19 non-RA SF samples contained > 10% V beta 17-positive T cells. Activated (Tac-positive) T cells were enriched among V beta 17-positive synovial T cells.
The selective increase of V beta 17-positive T cells suggests a role for those T cells in the pathogenesis of RA.