ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the expression of T cell immunoglobulin-and mucin-domaincontaining molecule-3 (Tim-3) in peripheral CD8 +T cells and its significance in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).Methods Fifty-eight CHB patients and 16 healthy controls were enrolled.Tim-3 expression in CDs + T cells was detected by flow cytometry,and quantities of IFNγ-producing HBV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) in HLA-A2 positive subjects were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (ELISPOT) test before and after the blockade of Tim-3/Tim-3L pathway.Paired t test was performed to compare the quantities of CTLs before and after the blockade,and nonparametric Spearman correlation analysis was performed to explore the correlation in quantitive data.Results Tim-3 expression in CHB patients was (14.2 ± 8.98 )％,which was higher than that of healthy controls (4.80 ± 2.92)％,and the difference was of statistical significance (x2 =92.48,P ＜ 0.05 ) Tim-3 expressions in 16 severe CHB patients and 42 mild CHB patients were ( 19.54 ± 10.95) ％ and (9.58 ± 7.30) ％,respectively,and the difference was statistically significant (x2 =77.24,P ＜ 0.05 ). Before the blockade of Tim-3/Tim-3L pathway,IFNγ-producing HBV-specific CTLs were 7.27 ± 3.14,and it increased to 19.62 ± 4.97 after the blockade ( t =2.95,P ＜ 0.05 ).Conclusion The upregulation of Tim-3 on peripheral CD8 + T cells may inhibit HBV-specific CTLs,and the blockade of Tim-3 pathway can enhance the proliferation of IFNγ-producing HBV-specific CTLs,thus can enhance antiviral effect.