Lymphopenia in primary Sjögren’s syndrome is associated with premature aging of naïve CD4+ T cells

Objective To investigate peripheral lymphopenia, a frequent finding in primary Sjögren’s syndrome (pSS) associated with higher disease activity and increased mortality. Methods Prospective, cross-sectional study of consecutive patients with pSS (n = 66) and healthy controls (n = 181). Lymphocyte subsets were analysed by flow cytometry, naïve (CD45RA+) and memory (CD45RO+) CD4+ T cells were purified by MACS technology. In vitro proliferation and...