Figure 3.

Analysis of IFN-γ secreting conventional CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T cells, as well as IL-17A- and IFN-γ-producing CD4⁺ T cells in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and healthy controls (HC). Circulating cytokine-secreting conventional T cells were analyzed as described in Section “Patients and Methods” and gated as described in Figure 2. Absolute numbers (cells/mm³) were obtained by multiplying the percentages of these T cells by the total T lymphocyte number. AS patients exhibited a significant lower number of IFN-γ secreting conventional CD4⁺ T cells (A), IFN-γ secreting conventional CD8⁺ T cells (B), and IL-17A positive IFN-γ negative CD4⁺ T cells (C) than HC. Data are depicted as box plots (the band inside the box corresponds to the median). Each symbol represents an AS patient (squares, n = 34 or 36) or HC (circles, n = 25 or 27).