T17 Cell Frequency in Peripheral Blood Is Elevated in Overweight Children without Chronic Inflammatory Diseases.

Background: The prevalence of obesity has dramatically increased in children in the last few decades and is associated with chronic inflammatory diseases. Fat tissue produces IL-6 and TNF-α, which are stimuli for T17 cell differentiation. These cells are characterized by expression of the transcription factor receptor-related orphan receptor C (RORC) and by IL-17A production.

SLy2 controls the antibody response to pneumococcal vaccine through an IL-5Rα-dependent mechanism in B-1 cells.

The adaptor protein SLy2 (Src homology domain 3 lymphocyte protein 2) is located on human chromosome 21 and was reported to be among a group of genes amplified in Down's syndrome (DS) patients. DS patients characteristically show an impaired immunity to pneumococcal infections. However, molecular mechanisms linking gene amplifications with specific DS phenotypes remain elusive.