title: Significance of CD30-positive lymphocytes in livers in primary biliary cirrhosis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is an autoimmune liver disease characterized by the destruction of intrahepatic small bile ducts. It is generally believed that cellular immune mechanisms, particularly T cells, cause this bile duct damage. CD30, which is inducible on selected T cells following activation, is regarded as important for B cell hyperactivity in several autoimmune diseases. In this study, we have attempted to examine CD30-expressing lymphocytes in PBC with respect to B cell hyperactivity.
  
  
  METHODS
  We surveyed and counted CD30+ lymphocytes in liver sections from 13 patients with PBC and 36 control livers, including chronic viral hepatitis, extrahepatic biliary obstruction and normal liver by immunohistochemical staining.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Several CD30+ lymphocytes were localized in inflamed portal tracts and also accentuated around the bile ducts in PBC livers, but they were rarely detected in control liver sections. The numbers of CD30+ lymphocytes in PBC were significantly higher than in control groups (P<0.01). Double immunohistochemical staining revealed that these CD30+ lymphocytes expressed CD3 as well as CD4. The number of CD30+ lymphocytes, moreover, correlated with that of immunoglobulin (Ig)A-containing cells (r=0.72) in PBC, although no such correlation between CD30+ lymphocytes and IgM or IgG-containing cells was obtained.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These findings indicate that intrahepatic CD30+ lymphocytes have a role in IgA type, B cell abnormal hyperactivity with respect to the pathogenesis of portal tract and bile duct lesions in PBC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology (II), Kanazawa University School of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Harada
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tsuneyama
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hiramatsu
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nakanuma
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D017730:Ki-1 Antigen / Q000378:metabolism*; D008105:Liver Cirrhosis, Biliary / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D017730:Ki-1 Antigen