Moreover, considering peripheral blood-derived CD4posIL17pos cells, RA patients with disease duration longer than 3 years have significantly higher percentages compared to early RA patients, requiring at least 12 months of CTLA4-Ig treatment to significantly reduce their rates, suggesting a distinct dynamism of CTLA4-Ig induced modulation on CD4pos cell phenotype. The gene discussed is CTLA4; the disease is rheumatoid arthritis.