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Predictive value of soluble PD-1 for HBsAg loss in HbeAg-negative patients with chronic hepatitis B: results from a
Huili Guo1,2, Lili Wu1,2, Chengyou Yu1,2
1Department of Infectious Diseases, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University, No 600 Tianhe Road, Guangzhou, 510630, Guangdong Province, China.
Background:
Soluble PD-1 (sPD-1) has emerged as a potential biomarker in chronic hepatitis B (CHB), but its predictive value for treatment response remains unclear.
Objective:
To examine the relationship between sPD-1 dynamics and HBsAg loss in HBeAg-negative CHB patients undergoing IFN-based therapy and assess the potential of sPD-1 as a biomarker for treatment response.
Methods:
We enrolled 222 HBeAg-negative CHB patients from a prospective study. Patients received at least 48 weeks of PEG-IFNα-2b therapy and were grouped based on HBsAg status at week 48 (loss vs. persistence). Peripheral blood sPD-1 levels were measured by ELISA, and PD-1 expression on CD4+ and CD8+ T cells was analyzed by flow cytometry. Propensity score matching (PSM) and Cox regression were applied to identify predictors of HBsAg loss.
Results:
Among the patients, 38.7% (86/222) achieved HBsAg loss. After PSM, both the HBsAg loss and HBsAg persistence groups included 74 patients, respectively. A reduction in HBsAg of more than 70% at week 12 (p = 0.012) and baseline sPD-1 level lower than 100 pg/mL (p = 0.016) were identified as independent predictors of HBsAg loss. sPD-1 levels showed a positive correlation with HBsAg levels, whereas PD-1 expression on peripheral CD4+ and CD8+ T cells demonstrated no significant association with HBsAg levels, suggesting that sPD-1 may better reflect systemic immune status.
Conclusions:
sPD-1 may serve as a potential biomarker for predicting HBsAg loss in HBeAg-negative CHB patients undergoing IFN-based therapy.
