Use of superficial markers for estimation of the intensity of immunological process in multiple sclerosis

The surface phenotype of peripheral blood lymphocytes was studied in patients with different stages of multiple sclerosis and in healthy donors. There was no differences in the CD3+, CD5+, and CD8+ lymphocyte counts, while the count of CD4+ lymphocytes was slightly higher in patients with clinically active disease, i.e., with pronounced neurological symptoms. At the same time, the CD25+ lymphocyte count was considerably higher predominantly in patients with severe multiple sclerosis. It is suggested that the count of CD25+ lymphocytes can be used to determine the stage of multiple sclerosis.