A COMPARISON OF GLANDULAR INVOLVEMENT BETWEEN CHRONIC GRAFT-VERSUS-HOST DISEASE AND SJOGRENS-SYNDROME

Patients with chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) occasionally s uffer from symptoms of xerostomia and xerophthalmia, which are also fe atures of Sjogren's syndrome (SS). To identify differences in the glan dular involvement between cGVHD and SS, we measured the proportions of infiltrating lymphocyte subsets and the expression of HLA-DR antigen and cell adhesion molecules in labial salivary glands (LSG). In cGVHD, mon than 90% of the infiltrating lymphocytes were T cells with a slig ht predominance of CD8(+) over CD4(+) cells. In SS, CD4(+) cells were predominant, and B cells accounted for 10-30% of the infiltrating lymp hocytes. Ductal epithelial cells associated with lymphocytic infiltrat ion expressed HLA-DR antigen in both cGVHD and SS. In SS alone, HLA-DR antigen expression also occurred without associated lymphocytic infil tration. The expression of adhesion molecules on ductal epithelial cel ls, especially vascular cell adhesion molecule-1, was more intense in SS than in cGVHD, while that on endothelial cells was similar in cGVHD and SS. These data suggest that the pathogenesis of glandular involve ment of cGVHD is different from that of SS.