Phenotypic and functional status of intrahepatic T cells in chronic hepatitis C.
Polychromatic flow-cytometric assays were used to analyze paired intrahepatic and peripheral lymphocyte samples from 37 patients with chronic hepatitis C. Compared with peripheral cells, intrahepatic T cells were selectively enriched with CD45RO+ memory T cells but had a lower percentage of CD4+ T cells expressing the differentiation markers CD27 and CD28. The percentage of intrahepatic CD45RO+ and CD28+ T cells correlated with the degree of liver inflammation, which suggests that memory T cells at relatively early stages of differentiation are directly involved in liver inflammation. Despite their memory phenotype, intrahepatic T cells were defective in proliferation capability, produced less interferon- gamma in response to stimulation by T cell receptor, and contained less perforin but expressed higher levels of Fas and Fas ligand, compared with their counterparts in peripheral blood. The distinct characteristics of intrahepatic T cells suggest that they play an important role in the immunopathogenesis of chronic hepatitis C.
Wang
Jinhui
J
Department of Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
Holmes
Tyson H
TH
de Guevara
Laura Ladron
LL
Cheung
Ramsey
R
Wright
Teresa L
TL
He
Xiao-Song
XS
Greenberg
Harry B
HB
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018106:CD28 Antigens / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007156:Immunologic Memory; D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D008099:Liver / Q000166:cytology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology*
D018106:CD28 Antigens; D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens