Table 2.
Messenger ribonucleic acid expression of effector T cell-specific transcription factors using the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of female healthy controls and patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis from Zahedan, Iran (N = 80)
| Transcription factor | Mean mRNA expression ± SE | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Healthy controls (n = 40) | HT patients (n = 40) | ||
| T-bet | 1.06 ± 0.18 | 2.08 ± 0.43 | 0.03 |
| GATA3 | 1.02 ± 0.15 | 1.94 ± 0.32 | 0.01 |
| RORα | 1.00 ± 0.16 | 1.39 ± 0.24 | 0.15 |
| FOXP3 | 1.00 ± 0.38 | 0.35 ± 0.09 | 0.05 |
| T-bet/GATA3 | 1.58 ± 0.27 | 1.26 ± 0.22 | 0.36 |
| GATA3/FOXP3 | 6.48 ± 2.90 | 13.30 ± 2.42 | 0.01 |
| T-bet/FOXP3 | 10.59 ± 5.26 | 29.37 ± 12.87 | 0.02 |
| RORα/FOXP3 | 6.36 ± 2.15 | 12.46 ± 3.06 | 0.01 |
mRNA = messenger ribonucleic acid; SE = standard error; HT = Hashimoto’s thyroiditis; T-bet = Th1-specific T box; GATA3 = GATA binding protein-3; RORα = retinoid-related orphan receptor-α; FOXP3 = forkhead box P3.