PD‐1 Regulates the Glycolytic Pathway to Reverse Abnormal CD4+ T Cell Differentiation and Alleviate Hashimoto's Thyroiditis

Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) is a prevalent autoimmune disease lacking a specific cure. This study endeavours to explore the role of PD-1 in modulating glycolysis during CD4⁺ T cell differentiation in HT. The lactate and glucose content in different groups was assessed using lactate and glucose assay kits. The tissue and cellular expression of HK2 and LDHA proteins was examined through Western blot analysis, while Glut1 expression and the ratio of Treg/Th17 cells were analysed using flow cytometry. The glycolysis levels in the HT group were higher than those in the control group. Additionally, the HTE group exhibited a decreased proportion of CD4⁺ CD25⁺ Tregs and an increased proportion of CD4⁺ TH17 cells compared to the healthy control group. Following the addition of PD-1 inhibitors to the activated group, both the glycolysis levels and CD4⁺ T cell differentiation showed improvement. PD-1 can regulate aberrant CD4⁺ T cell differentiation by modulating the glycolytic pathway.