Prevalence of Foam Cells and Helper-T cells in Atherosclerotic Plaques of Korean Patients with Carotid Atheroma

BACKGROUND: Inflammation and activation of immune cells have important roles in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. We analyzed the involvement of various immune cells in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. METHODS: We investigated the presence of foam cells, lymphocytes and killer cells in 11 atherosclerotic plaque specimens removed from Korean patients who underwent carotid endoarterectomy. Atherosclerotic plaques were analyzed by immunohistochemistry using monoclonal antibody specific to foam cells (anti-CD68), pan-T cells (anti-CD3), helper-T cells (anti-CD4), cytotoxic T cells (anti-CD8), granular component of killer cells (anti-TIA-1) and pan-B cells (anti-CD20). RESULTS: Analysis revealed a general infiltration of immune cells not only in atherosclerotic plaques but also in the vascular wall adjacent to the plaque. Heavy infiltration of CD68(+) macrophage was observed in all cases. In addition, significant infiltration of CD3(+) T-lymphocytes was observed in all cases, while CD20(+) B-cells were observed in only a few cases. Majority of the CD3(+) cells was found to be CD4(+) helper-T cells. CD8(+) cytotoxic T cells and TIA-1(+) cells were less prominent. CONCLUSION: Analysis of the human atherosclerotic plaques suggested that helper-T cells and foam cells had a major role in the plaque development.