title: Tim-3 alters the balance of IL-12/IL-23 and drives TH17 cells: role in hepatitis B vaccine failure during hepatitis C infection.
abstract: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination is recommended for individuals with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection given their shared risk factors and increased liver-related morbidity and mortality upon super-infection. Vaccine responses in this setting are often blunted, with poor response rates to HBV vaccinations in chronically HCV-infected individuals compared to healthy subjects. In this study, we investigated the role of T cell immunoglobulin mucin domain-3 (Tim-3)-mediated immune regulation in HBV vaccine responses during HCV infection. We found that Tim-3, a marker for T cell exhaustion, was over-expressed on monocytes, leading to a differential regulation of IL-12/IL-23 production which in turn TH17 cell accumulation, in HCV-infected HBV vaccine non-responders compared to HCV-infected HBV vaccine responders or healthy subjects (HS). Importantly, ex vivo blockade of Tim-3 signaling corrected the imbalance of IL-12/IL-23 as well as the IL-17 bias observed in HBV vaccine non-responders during HCV infection. These results suggest that Tim-3-mediated dysregulation of innate to adaptive immune responses is involved in HBV vaccine failure in individuals with chronic HCV infection, raising the possibility that blocking this negative signaling pathway might improve the success rate of HBV immunization in the setting of chronic viral infection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, James H. Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, United States.
authors.forename: Jia M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Cheng J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Guang Y
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Xiao Y
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Penny
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Thayer
authors.forename: Pamela
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Greer
authors.forename: Ashley M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Kevin P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: High
authors.forename: Jonathan P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Moorman
authors.forename: Zhi Q
authors.initials: ZQ
authors.lastname: Yao
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D000072597:Hepatitis A Virus Cellular Receptor 2; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies / Q000097:blood; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000276:immunology*; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000276:immunology; D053759:Interleukin-23 / Q000276:immunology*; D008099:Liver / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology; D008297:Male; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D009000:Monocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology; D058504:Th17 Cells / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: C448908:HAVCR2 protein, human; D000072597:Hepatitis A Virus Cellular Receptor 2; D006510:Hepatitis B Antibodies; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D020381:Interleukin-17; D053759:Interleukin-23; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D018664:Interleukin-12