Natural killer cell populations in Egyptians infected with hepatitis C virus.
Natural killer (NK) cells are key players in the immune response to viruses. This study examined the effect of hepatitis C virus (HCV) on the frequency of NK cells and their subsets in individuals with different clinical outcomes; 20 positive for anti-HCV and HCV-RNA (chronic hepatitis C), 20 positive for anti-HCV but negative for HCV-RNA (spontaneously resolved) and 20 healthy controls free of HCV. There was a significant reduction in the frequency of total NK cells in the chronic group compared to the control (P = 0.001) or resolved (P = 0.01) groups. The percentage of CD56(bright) cells was significantly higher than the control group (P = 0.04). While the percentages of CD56 (dim) cells and their CD16 expression were lower in the chronic group, this was not statistically significant. The frequency of CD3+CD56- T cells was significantly lower in both the chronic and resolved groups compared to the control group (P = 0.04). Our results confirm a potential role of NK cells and the different subsets in the pathogenesis of chronic HCV infection.
Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University Cairo, Egypt.
M
M
Rafik
G
G
Sidhom
R
R
Mamdouh
D
D
Ellebedy
M
M
Mohamed
D017252:CD3 Complex / Q000096:biosynthesis; D019002:CD56 Antigen / Q000096:biosynthesis; D004534:Egypt / Q000453:epidemiology; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies / Q000276:immunology; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology*; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000276:immunology; D017452:Receptors, IgG / Q000096:biosynthesis
D017252:CD3 Complex; D019002:CD56 Antigen; D018937:Hepatitis C Antibodies; D017452:Receptors, IgG