Dynamic change in Th17/regulatory T cell ratio in peripheral blood of patients with acute hepatitis B and its significance

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the dynamic changes in the frequencies of Th17 (CD3+CD8-IL-17+) and regulatory T cells (Treg, CD4+CD25+CD127low) and Th17/Treg ratio in the peripheral blood in patients with acute hepatitis B (AHB), as well as their association with the outcome of AHB. Methods: A total of 10 AHB patients were enrolled as observation group, and according to the outcome of AHB, these patients were further divided into acute stage group, early recovery group, and full recovery group. Another 10 healthy subjects who underwent physical examination were enrolled as control group. Flow cytometry was used to measure the frequencies of Th17 and Treg in peripheral blood, and the Th17/Treg ratio was calculated. An automatic biochemical analyzer was used to measure liver function parameters, and RT-PCR was used to measure HBV DNA. An one-way analysis of variance was used for comparison between groups, and the t-test was used for comparison between any two groups. Results: Compared with the control group, the acute stage group showed significant increases in the frequencies of Th17 and Treg (18.22%±4.13%/6.46%±2.46% vs 0.68%±0.29%/1.62%±0.18%,P< 0.01) and the Th17/Treg ratio (3.37±1.73 vs 0.42±0.20,P< 0.01). Compared with the acute stage group, the early recovery group showed a significant reduction in the frequency of Th17 (3.14%±1.90%,P< 0.01), a significant increase in the frequency of Treg (11.73%±1.76%,P< 0.01), and a significant reduction in the Th17/Treg ratio (0.27±0.19,P< 0.01). Compared with the early recovery group, the full recovery group showed a slight increase in the frequency of Th17 (3.31±0.95,P= 0.888), a significant reduction in the frequency of Treg (6.83%±1.85%,P< 0.01), but which was significantly higher than that in the control group (P< 0.01), and a slight increase in the Th17/Treg ratio (0.52±0.21,P< 0.05), which showed no significant difference between this group and the control group (P= 0.286). In the acute stage of AHB, HBsAg and HBeAg levels were positively correlated with Th17/Treg ratio (r= 0.639,P< 0.05;r= 0.633,P< 0.05). Conclusion: The dynamic changes in the frequencies of Th17 and Treg and the Th17/Treg ratio may be associated with the outcome of AHB.