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Peripheral blood memory B cells are resistant to apoptosis in chronic hepatitis C patients

Toshiaki Mizuochi1, Masahiko Ito, Kenji Takai

  • 1Department of Research on Blood and Biological Products, 4-7-1 Gakuen, Musashi-Murayama, Tokyo 208-0011, Japan. miz@nih.go.jp

Virus Research
|September 30, 2010
PubMed

Insights

In chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients, CD27(+) B cells, a memory phenotype, are surprisingly resistant to apoptosis. This suggests memory B cells may serve as a reservoir for persistent hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Virology
  • Hepatology

Background:

  • Peripheral B cells in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients are infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV).
  • A reduced frequency of CD27(+) B cells (memory phenotype) was observed in CHC patients.
  • It was hypothesized that CD27(+) B cells are susceptible to apoptosis upon HCV infection.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the susceptibility of CD27(+) B cells to apoptosis in CHC patients.
  • To investigate the role of memory B cells in persistent HCV infection.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of apoptosis in CD27(+) and CD27(-) B cell subsets from CHC patients.
  • Comparison of apoptosis resistance between B cell subsets.

Main Results:

  • Contrary to the initial assumption, CD27(+) B cells demonstrated increased resistance to apoptosis compared to CD27(-) B cells.
  • This finding challenges the notion that memory B cells are readily eliminated.

Conclusions:

  • CD27(+) B cells are more resistant to apoptosis than CD27(-) B cells in CHC patients.
  • This resistance suggests a potential role for memory B cells as a reservoir for persistent HCV infection.
  • Further research is warranted to elucidate the mechanisms behind memory B cell survival and their contribution to chronic infection.

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