Assessment of intrahepatic regulatory T cells in children with autoimmune hepatitis
Journal Title: Annals of Hepatology - Year 2016, Vol 15, Issue 5
Abstract
Background. T-cell populations regulate the balance of immune responses. The CD (Cluster of differentiation) 4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) are crucial for maintaining negative control of various immune responses. There are different T-cell subpopulations with regulatory functions, as natural killer T cells, CD8+ and CD28. The forkhead box P3 (FOXP3) regulates Treg development and is required for its suppressive function. Aim. To evaluate the hepatic expression of the intrahepatic Tregs, Ig (immunoglobulin) G and IgM plasma cells in autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and other chronic liver diseases (CLDs). Material and methods. This study included 100 pediatric patients; 50 AIH and 50 CLDs other than AIH. All patients were subjected to routine investigations of CLDs plus immune-staining of liver tissue for FOXp3, IgG and IgM plasma cells, CD4 and CD8 T-cells. Results. The FOXP3+ T cells in patients with AIH (6.3 ± 5) were significantly higher than that in the non-AIH (2.1 ± 2.6). FOXP3+ T cells were abundant in liver tissue with marked inflammatory cellular infiltrate. CD4+ and CD8+ infiltrating the liver tissue and IgG positive cells were significantly higher in AIH group, while the expression of IgM positive cells showed no significant difference. The IgG/IgM was significantly higher in the AIH treatment responders (3 ± 3) than non-responders (1.6 ± 0.5), while there was no significant difference regarding the intrahepatic expression of FOXP3+, CD4+, CD8+ cells, T-cells, IgG and IgM plasma cells. Conclusion. Intrahepatic Tregs were increased in number in patients with AIH in the initial presentation, and their presence is associated with increased activity and inflammation in liver biopsy.
Authors and Affiliations
Behairy Behairy , Hanaa El-Araby, Hasan Abd El kader, Nermin Ehsan, Menan Salem, Haidy Zakaria, Mohammed Khedr
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP78612
- DOI 10.5604/16652681.1212319
- Views 158
- Downloads 0
Novel cytochrome P450-2D6 promoter sequence variations in hepatitis C positive and negative subjects
Introduction. CYP2D6 is a liver enzyme that metabolizes more that 25% of drugs and thus may play a pivotal role in drug-drug interactions. The promoter sequences of cytochrome P450 2D6 (CYP2D6) gene could impact metaboli...
Effect of cholecystectomy on bile acid synthesis and circulating levels of fibroblast growth factor 19
Background and rationale for the study. FGF19/15 is a gut-derived hormone presumably governing bile acid (BA) synthesis and gallbladder (GB) refilling. FGF19 mRNA is present in human GB cholangiocytes (hGBECs); however,...
The Optimal Transfusion Strategy in Liver Transplantation: The Quest Continues
-
Clinical and Laboratory Associations with Persistent Hyperferritinemia in 373 Black Hemochromatosis and Iron Overload Screening Study Participants
Background. 373 black participants had elevated screening and post-screening serum ferritin (SF) (> 300 μg/L men; > 200 μg/L women). Material and methods. We retrospectively studied SF and post-screening age; sex; body m...
Hepatitis C antiviral long-term treatment against cirrhosis (HALT-C) trial
It is a comment of an article published in N Engl J Med. 2008;359:2429-41