Purpose: To explore the effect of chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) on the immune response involved in rats with experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU).
Methods: Lewis rats were randomly divided into control, EAU, CUMS, and EAU+CUMS groups and received relevant treatments. On days 7, 11, 14, 21 and 28, frequencies of Th17 and Treg cells and the related cytokines were analyzed.
Results: The intraocular inflammation of EAU rats peaked between days 11 and 13, while the severity of inflammation of the rats in EAU+CUMS group fluctuated between 11 and 15 days. Both frequencies of Th17, Treg cells and the related cytokines exhibited a significant difference between the two groups on days 11 and 14.
Conclusion: CUMS may protect against the possible harmful effects of immune disorder in rats with EAU through suppressing the immune disorder of T lymphocyte and the related cytokine responses.
Keywords: Chronic unpredictable mild stress; T helper 17; cytokine; experimental autoimmune uveitis; regulatory T cell.