Lack of preferential Vβ usage in synovial T cells of rheumatoid arthritis patients

The T-cell receptor Vβ subfamily repertoires of synovial and peripheral T cells of 8 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients were determined using the polymerase chain reaction. Three normal controls were included. Some of the rheumatoid synovial samples did not express the complete range of Vβ families and lacked as many as 6 gene families. However, these patients showed considerable individual variation in expression. Overall, the data do not support preferential T-cell receptor Vβ usage in synovial T cells of RA patients either in comparison to their autochthonous peripheral T cells or to peripheral T cells of normal subjects.