Gastroenterology Division, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, 14048-900 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, 14048-900 Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
J Immunol Res. 2018 May 21;2018:2563563. doi: 10.1155/2018/2563563. eCollection 2018.
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) can escape from innate and adaptive immunity, making the immune response ineffective. Human leukocyte antigen E (HLA-E) might regulate the antiviral function of immune response and contribute to the persistence of HCV and the severity of liver disease. This study aimed to evaluate the expression of HLA-E in the liver and its association with the severity of liver disease in HCV patients. We performed a retrospective analysis of liver biopsies from 125 HCV patients and from 20 control subjects without liver disease. Liver biopsies were reviewed and classified according to severity of fibrosis and inflammatory activity. The pathologist assessed the magnitude of HLA-E expression in a semiquantitative way, attributing scores from 0 to 3. Immunohistochemistry showed positive for HLA-E in hepatocyte and Kupffer cells. The rate of HLA-E positivity in hepatocytes and Kupffer cells was significantly higher in HCV patients compared to controls. The liver samples classified as severe fibrosis and necroinflammatory activity presented greater expression of HLA-E on Kupffer cells and hepatocytes, with a significant linear association. It indicates that HLA-E expression may have an immunomodulatory effect and a possible role in the severity of liver disease in chronic hepatitis C.
丙型肝炎病毒 (HCV) 能够逃避先天和适应性免疫，使免疫反应无效。人类白细胞抗原 E (HLA-E) 可能调节免疫反应的抗病毒功能，并有助于 HCV 的持续存在和肝脏疾病的严重程度。本研究旨在评估 HCV 患者肝脏中 HLA-E 的表达及其与肝脏疾病严重程度的关系。我们对 125 例 HCV 患者和 20 例无肝脏疾病的对照患者的肝活检进行了回顾性分析。根据纤维化和炎症活动的严重程度对肝活检进行了回顾和分类。病理学家以半定量的方式评估 HLA-E 表达的程度，赋值范围为 0 至 3。免疫组织化学显示肝细胞和枯否细胞呈 HLA-E 阳性。与对照组相比，HCV 患者的肝细胞和枯否细胞中 HLA-E 阳性率明显更高。被归类为严重纤维化和坏死性炎症活动的肝组织样本中，Kupffer 细胞和肝细胞上 HLA-E 的表达更高，呈显著线性关联。这表明 HLA-E 表达可能具有免疫调节作用，并可能在慢性丙型肝炎的肝脏疾病严重程度中发挥作用。
