Thiel J, et al. - Researchers gauged the involvement of microRNA-183 and microRNA-96 (miR-183 and miR-96) in the regulation of several immune responses, including autoimmunity. Researchers found miR-183 and miR-96 to be highly expressed in CD4⁺ T cells from peripheral blood of Graves' orbitopathy patients and in human and murine T cells upon activation in vitro. Findings suggested the ability of miR-183 and miR-96 to regulate the strength of T cell activation and, consequently, the development and severity of T cell-dependent autoimmune diseases. Decreased EGR-1 and PTEN expression, elevated Akt phosphorylation, and enhanced proliferation resulted from the overexpression of miR-183 and miR-96 in murine CD4⁺ T cells by retroviral gene transfer.