title: Immune response to hepatitis B virus surface antigen peptides during HBV infection.
abstract: Antibody responses of patients with acute (n = 73), fulminant (n = 30) and chronic (n = 51) hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection as well as recovered individuals (n = 7) were studied against three synthetic peptides, Pre-S1 amino acids (aa. 12-32), Pre-S2 amino acids (aa. 120-145), and S amino acids (aa. 124-147) of the envelope region (HBsAg). T cell blastogenic response was investigated in a proportion of the patients (27 acute, nine fulminant, 13 chronic hepatitis and seven recovered individuals) along with seven HBV vaccinated and three normal individuals. The presence of T cell response against S peptide was observed in all the cases (9/9, 100%) during early acute hepatitis. This was suppressed during late stages (8/18, 44%) followed by partial reversal during recovery (5/7, 71%). T cell response and antibodies to Pre-S1 and Pre-S2 peptides were present only in one-third of the patients throughout these periods. The T cell blastogenic response as well as antibody reactivity against these peptides were absent and minimal in chronic hepatitis. Immune response against envelope protein appears to play a major role in acute hepatic injury due to HBV infection and help in virus clearance.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Durgapal
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Manivel
authors.forename: S K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Acharya
authors.forename: K V
authors.initials: KV
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.forename: S K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Panda
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000917:Antibody Formation; D002908:Chronic Disease; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000276:immunology*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010455:Peptides / Q000276:immunology; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D010455:Peptides; D011498:Protein Precursors; C050806:presurface protein 1, hepatitis B surface antigen; C050807:presurface protein 2, hepatitis B surface antigen