Expression of PD-L1 on Peripheral Blood B Lymphocytes of Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Objective In order to investigate the implication of the expression of PD-L1 in pe- ripheral blood B lymphocytes in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).Methods The expression of the PD-L1 on peripheral blood B lymphocytes was examined in 15 patients with active SLE,10 patients with inactive SLE and 10 healthy controls by the technique of the immunofluores- cence and the flow cytometry.Results The expression of CD19~+,CD19~+ PD-L1~+ on peripheral blood B lymphocytes of the patients with active SLE was higher than those in patients with inactive SLE (P0.05) and healthy controls (P0.05).Conclusion The expression of PD-L1 on periph- eral B lymphocytes of patients with active SLE was significanty increased,suggesting that the PD-L1 might play an important role in the pathogenesis of SLE.