Background and objectives: Adhesion molecules on T cells were implicated in the process of leukocyte migration and GVHD. The aim of this study was to investigate the profiles of adhesion molecule expression on naïve T cells in bone marrow grafts of healthy donors treated with G-CSF.
Methods: The expression of four adhesion molecules, including VLA-4, ICAM-1, L-selectin, and LFA-1, on naïve T cells in G-CSF-primed bone marrow grafts (G-BM) from 35 healthy donors was analyzed using flow cytometry.
Results: G-CSF administration significantly decreased the expression of VLA-4, ICAM-1, L-selectin, and LFA-1 on naïve CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in bone marrow grafts. Treating healthy donors with G-CSF significantly increased the percentages of interleukin-4 (IL-4) positive cells in naïve CD4+ and CD8+ T cell subsets, leading to polarization of bone marrow naïve CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from Th1 to Th2 phenotype.
Conclusions: Our results suggest that CD4+ and CD8+ naïve T cells in G-BM have lower intensities of expression of several adhesion molecules. The clinical significance of these alteration warrants further study.