[Changes of RANTES levels in livers of patients with chronic hepatitis B: the clinical significance and the possible mechanisms].
OBJECTIVE
To study the relationship between intra-hepatic levels of regulated on activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted (RANTES) and the disease severity and liver inflammatory degrees in patients with chronic hepatitis B and the possible mechanism of the changes of intra-hepatic levels of RANTES.


METHODS
The expression of RANTES of the livers was studied using immunohistochemical stainings and morphometric quantitative measurements in liver specimens from 10 normal subjects and 64 patients with chronic hepatitis B with different degrees of liver inflammation and different clinical severity. The expressions of RANTES protein and mRNA in cell line HepG2, HepG2.2.15 and HepG2 treated with 10 ng/ml TNFa at different times were quantified by ELISA and one-step RT-PCR.


RESULTS
The expression of RANTES of the livers in patients was significantly higher than that in the normal controls. Hepatic RANTES levels increased significantly and the increases were parallel to the increases of the severity of the hepatitis, from mild, moderate to severe hepatitis (the positive units were 3.7+/-1.5, 15.6+/-6.9, 24.0+/-4.0, 37.9+/-11.1, respectively) and from G0 degree to G4 degrees of liver inflammation (the positive units were 3.7+/-1.5, 15.0+/-5.7, 21.6+/-5.9, 30.3+/-8.2, 40.9+/-12.3, respectively). The expressions of RANTES protein and mRNA of HepG2.2.15 were higher than that of HepG2. RANTES protein and mRNA were induced in HepG2 by TNFa.


CONCLUSIONS
RANTES may have an important role in the pathogenesis of chronic hepatitis B. The elevation of hepatic RANTES may be caused by hepatitis B virus and TNFa.
Wei
Xiu-qing
XQ
Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guanzhou 510630, China. weixiuqing1975@yahoo.com.cn
Wen
Zhuo-fu
ZF
Zheng
Feng-ping
FP
Yao
Ji-lu
JL
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D018946:Chemokine CCL5 / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D056945:Hep G2 Cells; D006515:Hepatitis B virus; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D055815:Young Adult
D018946:Chemokine CCL5; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha