title: The intrahepatic immune response during chronic hepatitis B infection can be monitored by the fine-needle aspiration biopsy technique.
abstract: Frequent analysis of the intrahepatic cellular immune response during chronic hepatitis B infection is not feasible with the liver tissue biopsy technique, due to its risk profile and patient discomfort. We investigated whether the relatively safe and patient-friendly cytological fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) technique is suited for this purpose. FNABs taken during hepatitis flares in three chronic hepatitis B patients treated with interferon-alpha, showed significant increments of CD8(+)-lymphocytes compared with the FNABs taken before and after the flares. No increments were observed in peripheral blood. The increments of intrahepatic CD8+ lymphocytes detected by the FNAB were related to anti-viral immune reactivity, since they coincided with significant serum hepatitis B virus DNA level reductions and in two of three patients with HBeAg seroconversion. In conclusion, the FNAB technique is suited to investigate the intrahepatic immune response during chronic hepatitis B infection on a frequent basis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Room L-455, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, P.O. Box 2040, 3000 CA Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Thjon J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Harry L A
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Janssen
authors.forename: Johannes G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Kusters
authors.forename: Robert A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: de Man
authors.forename: Solko W
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Schalm
authors.forename: Jaap
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kwekkeboom
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D001707:Biopsy, Needle; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000276:immunology; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D008099:Liver / Q000276:immunology; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D000410:Alanine Transaminase