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Mol. Cells 2013; 36(4): 362-367
Published online October 22, 2013
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10059-013-0181-z
© The Korean Society for Molecular and Cellular Biology
HCV-Specific Interleukin-21+CD4+ T Cells Responses Associated with Viral Control through the Modulation of HCV-Specific CD8+ T Cells Function in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients
Interleukin-21 (IL-21)+CD4+ T cells are involved in the immune response against hepatitis B virus (HBV) by secreting IL-21. However, the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in the immune response against chronic hepatitis C (CHC) virus infection is poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in CHC patients and the potential mechanisms. The study subjects in-cluded nineteen CHC patients who were grouped by viral load (low, < 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 8; high, > 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 11). The peripheral frequency of HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells was higher in the low viral load group and was negatively correlated with the serum HCV RNA viral load in all CHC patients. Meanwhile, IL-21+ cells accumulated in the liver in the low viral load group. In vitro, IL-21 treatment increased the expression of proliferation markers and cytolytic molecules on HCV-specific CD8+ T cells. In summary, these findings suggest that HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells might contribute to HCV control by rescuing HCV-specific CD8+ T cells in CHC patients.
Keywords chronic hepatitis C, HCV-specific CD8+ T cells, HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells, interleukin-21, viral control
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Research Article
Mol. Cells 2013; 36(4): 362-367
Published online October 31, 2013 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10059-013-0181-z
Copyright © The Korean Society for Molecular and Cellular Biology.
HCV-Specific Interleukin-21+CD4+ T Cells Responses Associated with Viral Control through the Modulation of HCV-Specific CD8+ T Cells Function in Chronic Hepatitis C Patients
Guohua Feng, Ji-Yuan Zhang, Qing-Lei Zeng, Lei Jin, Junliang Fu, Bin Yang, Ying Sun, Tianjun Jiang, Xiangsheng Xu, Zheng Zhang, Jinhong Yuan, Liyuan Wu, and Fu-Sheng Wang
1Research Center for Biological Therapy, Beijing 302 Hospital, Peking University Health Science Center, 2Research Center for Biological Therapy, 3Department of Interventional Radiology, 4Non-infectious Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment Center, 5Department of Infectious Diseases, 6Department of Pathology and Hepatology, Beijing 302 Hospital, 100 the Western 4th Ring Middle Road, Beijing 100039, China, 7These authors contributed equally to this work.
Abstract
Interleukin-21 (IL-21)+CD4+ T cells are involved in the immune response against hepatitis B virus (HBV) by secreting IL-21. However, the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in the immune response against chronic hepatitis C (CHC) virus infection is poorly understood. This study aimed to investigate the role of IL-21+CD4+ T cells in CHC patients and the potential mechanisms. The study subjects in-cluded nineteen CHC patients who were grouped by viral load (low, < 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 8; high, > 106 RNA copies/ml, n = 11). The peripheral frequency of HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells was higher in the low viral load group and was negatively correlated with the serum HCV RNA viral load in all CHC patients. Meanwhile, IL-21+ cells accumulated in the liver in the low viral load group. In vitro, IL-21 treatment increased the expression of proliferation markers and cytolytic molecules on HCV-specific CD8+ T cells. In summary, these findings suggest that HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells might contribute to HCV control by rescuing HCV-specific CD8+ T cells in CHC patients.
Keywords: chronic hepatitis C, HCV-specific CD8+ T cells, HCV-specific IL-21+CD4+ T cells, interleukin-21, viral control
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