Objective To investigate the expression and significance of Fork head /winged helix protein 3 (Foxp3) , retinoic acid-related orphan receptorγt (RORγt) , and interleukin-17 (IL-17) in Guinea pigs with emphysema. Methods Smoking and active immunization with elastin were separately used in guinea pigs to establish emphysema model. Then the destruction of lung tissue was assayed by measurement of the average radius of alveolar. The expressions of Foxp3 , RORγt, and IL-17 in lung tissue of the guinea pigs were detected by immunohistochemical technique. The results were compared with the normal control group by the analysis of variance or kruskal-Wallis test. Spearman rank correlation was used to analyze the correlation between the ratio of Foxp3/RORγt and IL-17, also the correlation between Foxp3/RORγt and the average radius of alveolar. Results In the smoking group and the active immunization group, the average radius of alveolar were significantly longer than the control group (Plt;0.05) . And the expression of Foxp3/RORγt was significantly unbalanced, with the number of Foxp3-positive cells decreased and RORγt-positive cells increased (Plt;0.05) . Meanwhile the level of IL-17 was significantly increased compared with the control group ( Plt;0.05) . The difference between the smoking group and the active immunization group was not significant (Pgt;0.05) . The ratio of Foxp3/RORγt was negatively correlated with the level of IL-17 and the average radius of alveolar. Conclusions Active immunization with elastin can induce emphysema in guinea pigs. The Foxp3/RORγt expression was unbalanced in lung tissue of guinea pigs with emphysema.This imbalance may be an important mechanism attributed to the disordered expression of CD4+ Treg cells and Th17 cells, which may be involved in autoimmune regulation and development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.