Regulatory T cells and vitamin D status in children with chronic autoimmune thyroiditis

Objective: it is suggested that vitamin d is one of the factors that can regulate the function of treg cells. in this study,the relationships between treg cells and vitamin d levels was investigated in pediatric chronic autoimmune thyroiditis (cat) patients. methods: thirty-two children with cat and 24 healthy subjects were studied. foxp3 expressing cd4+cd25+high foxp3+t cells were identified as treg cells. at diagnosis,25-hydroxycholecalciferol (25ohd3) levels were determined in all patients. foxp3 expression was measured before and after vitamin d replacement therapy in patients having low levels of 25ohd3. results: in the cat patients,treg cell levels did not differ from the control group,while the frequency of vitamin d deficiency was higher and foxp3 molecule expression was lower. foxp3 molecule expression significantly increased in cat patients having vitamin d deficiency who were given vitamin d replacement. conclusion: foxp3 expression is decreased in pediatric cat patients. this reduction seems to be associated with vitamin d levels. vitamin d can play a role in enhancing natural treg cell functions. © journal of clinical research in pediatric endocrinology.