Background: Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a subset of innate-like T cells that, when activated, can rapidly produce cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin 17 (IL-17). The immune response is an important mechanism of injury after stroke. However, there have been relatively few studies on the role of MAIT cells in ischemic brain injury. This study aims to assess the predictive value of MAIT cells in acute ischemic stroke (AIS).
Methods: We prospectively and continuously enrolled AIS patients within 72 hours of stroke onset and contemporaneous controls. All patients underwent 1-year follow-up. using Kaplan-Meier curves to calculate the incidence risks of outcome events across different levels of MAIT cells.
Results: We included 188 patients with AIS and 135 controls in this study, and 50 (26.6%) patients showed END. After adjusting for all potential confounders, MAIT cell frequency was identified as a risk factor for AIS. The levels of IL-17 and TNF-α were significantly higher in patients with AIS and exhibited a negative correlation with MAIT cell frequencies. The MAIT cell frequencies in patients with early neurological deterioration (END) were lower than in those without END. At the 1-year follow-up, there was no statistical significance between MAIT cells and the recurrence events (P > 0.05).
Conclusions: MAIT cells were decreased in patients with AIS and could serve as a predictive marker for END. However, they may have limited predictive value for long-term recurrence events. MAIT cell modulation could be a potential novel strategy for future AIS treatments.