RESUMO
Objective: The aim of this study was to determine tumor necrosis factor alpha [TNF-alpha] and interleukin-6 [IL-6] release in response to platelet-activating factor [PAF] induction in peripheral blood mononuclear cells [PBMCs] from chronic hepatitis B virus [HBV] carriers
Methods: Subjects were grouped into three subgroups. The mean age was 37 +/- 10 years. Group A [n = 15], group B [n = 10] and group C [n = 9] subjects were HBV serology-negative, had natural immunity after recovery from an acute HBV infection, and were chronic HBV carriers, respectively
Results: Compared with group A, PBMCs from naturally immune subjects and chronic HBV carriers produced significantly higher amounts of TNF-alpha and IL-6 in response to PAF. In chronic HBV carriers, TNF-alpha [1,633.3 +/- 793.7] and IL-6 [2,533.3 +/- 466.3] production was statistically lower than TNF-alpha [2,630.0 +/- 727.3] and IL-6 [3,870.0 +/- 728.4] obtained from naturally immune subjects to HBV
Conclusion: Differences of TNF-alpha levels between chronic HBV carriers and naturally immune subjects suggest that TNF-alpha may be a critical mediator of HBV clearance