Telomerase Expression Related with Poor Immune Response to HCV Core Antigen in Egyptian HCV Patients' PBMCs.

Autor: Ibrahim IH; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Egypt., Ali OSM; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Egypt., El-Sahar AA; Department of Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine (Boys), Al-Azhar University, Egypt., Elrefaei M; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA., El-Sheikh N; Molecular Immunology Unit for Infectious Diseases, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine (Girls), Al-Azhar University, Egypt.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Journal of clinical and experimental hepatology [J Clin Exp Hepatol] 2023 Nov-Dec; Vol. 13 (6), pp. 1008-1016. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Jun 19.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jceh.2023.06.004
Abstrakt: Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary malignant tumor of the liver.
Aim: This study aimed to assess serum human telomerase enzyme (hTERT) levels and their relation to the progression of liver disease. Also, it aimed to assess the effect of hepatitis C virus (HCV) core protein on memory T-cells in HCV patients with or without HCC and the correlation between memory cell phenotype and the progression of the disease in the same patients.
Methods: HTERT level in serum was assessed through relative quantitative RT-PCR. Flow cytometric analysis was used to assess T-cell responsiveness (as IFN- γ secretion) before and after stimulation with HCV core protein and the memory CD8+ cell phenotype using several differentiation markers.
Results: HTERT was found to be increased in a stepwise manner upon comparing its level in controls, chronic hepatitis patients, cirrhotic patients, and HCC patients. T-cells showed a similar manner of stepwise decrease in response (decreased IFN- γ secretion) in HCC patients compared to HCV patients without HCC and controls. Also, late differentiated memory cells (CD8+, CD27-, CD28-, CD45RA+, and CCR7-) were depleted in HCC patients compared to HCV patients without HCC.
Conclusion: These results suggest a negative correlation between hTERT and IFN- γ secretion by T-cells in HCV patients and that this relationship, along with the depletion of late differentiated memory cells, could help the progression of liver disease to HCC.
(© 2023 Indian National Association for Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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