Abstract: Objective To investigate the significance of macrophage polarization imbalance and metabolic pathway changes in the occurrence and development of autoimmune thyroiditis (AIT). Methods Four weeks old NOD.H-2^h4 female mice were randomly divided into control group and AIT group(0.05% sodium iodide water). Hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining was used to observe the lymphocyte infiltration in thyroid tissue. TgAb was measured by ELISA technology. The ratio of M1 type and M2 type macrophages in thyroid tissue was analyzed by immunofluorescence. Seahorse was used to analyze the energy metabolism of cells, and the extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) and oxygen consumption rate (OCR) were measured. Results The thyroid tissue of mice in AIT group had obvious lymphocyte infiltration, and the incidence of AIT was significantly higher than the control group(P＜0.05). Compared with the control group, the ratio of M1 and M2 macrophages in the thyroid tissue of mice in the AIT group increased, while the proportion of M2 type macrophages decreased (P＜0.05); the ECAR and OCR values of mice in the high iodine drinking water group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P＜0.05). Conclusions The changes of macrophage metabolism and polarization imbalance affect the occurrence and development of AIT.

Key words: autoimmune thyroiditis, immunometabolism, macrophage polarization, glycolysis, metabolic reprogramming