T Cells in Autoimmunity-Associated Cardiovascular Diseases

• Main Authors: Daniella Muallem Schwartz, Aarohan M. Burma, Moses M. Kitakule, Yiming Luo, Nehal N. Mehta
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2020-10-01
• Series: Frontiers in Immunology
• Subjects: T cells; autoimmunity; cardiovascular; systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE); rheumatoid arthritis (RA); psoriasis
• Online Access: https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fimmu.2020.588776/full

T cells are indisputably critical mediators of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD), where they secrete pro-inflammatory cytokines that promote vascular pathology. Equally well-established is the fact that autoimmune diseases, which are mediated by autoreactive T cells, substantially increase the risk of developing CVD. Indeed, as immunomodulatory treatments have become more effective at treating end-organ pathology, CVD has become a leading cause of death in patients with autoimmune diseases. Despite this, investigators have only recently begun to probe the mechanisms by which autoreactive T cells promote CVD in the context of autoimmune diseases. T cells are best-studied in the pathogenesis of systemic vasculitides, where they react to self-antigen in the vessel wall. However, newer studies indicate that T cells also contribute to the increased CVD risk associated with lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. Given the central role of T-cell-derived cytokines in the pathogenesis of psoriasis, the role of these factors in psoriatic CVD is also under investigation. In the future, T cells are likely to represent major targets for the prevention and treatment of CVD in patients with autoimmune diseases.