Background Chronic hepatitis C virus infection is a leading cause of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Both advanced solid tumors and hepatitis C have previously been associated with memory B-cell dysfunction. In this study we sought to dissect the impact of viral infection, cirrhosis and liver cancer on memory B-cell frequency and function in the spectrum of HCV disease. Methods Peripheral blood from healthy donors, HCV-infected patients with F1–F2 liver fibrosis, HCV-infected patients with cirrhosis, patients with HCV-related hepatocellular carcinoma and non-HCV-infected cirrhotics were assessed for B-cell phenotype by flow cytometry. Isolated B-cells were stimulated with anti-CD40 antibodies and TLR9 agonist for assessment of costimulation marker expression, cytokine production, immunoglobulin production and CD4+ T-cell allostimulatory capacity. Results CD27+ memory B-cells, and more specifically CD27+IgM+ B-cells, were markedly less frequent in cirrhotic patients independent of HCV infection. Circulating B-cells in cirrhotics were hyporesponsive to CD40/TLR9 activation as characterized by CD70 upregulation, TNFβ secretion, IgG production and T-cell allostimulation. Lastly, blockade of TLR4 and TLR9 signaling abrogated the activation of normal donor B-cells by cirrhotic plasma suggesting a role for bacterial translocation in driving B-cell changes in cirrhosis. Conclusion Profound abnormalities in B-cell phenotype and function occur in cirrhosis independent of hepatitis C viral infection. These B-cell defects may explain in part the vaccine hyporesponsiveness and susceptibility to bacterial infection in this population.

Our results suggest that strong TAA-specific CD8(+) T-cell responses suppress the recurrence of HCC. Immunotherapy to induce TAA-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes by means such as the use of peptide vaccines should be considered for clinical application in patients with HCC after local therapy.

Hepatitis C cirrhosis is associated with a profound disappearance of memory B-cells. We sought to determine if this loss is associated with the expansion of the CD27 − CD21 − tissue-like memory B-cells with features of B-cell exhaustion. To this end, we quantified the frequency of CD27 − CD21 − B-cells in healthy, non-cirrhotic HCV-infected, and cirrhotic patients. We examined the expression of putative inhibitory receptors, the proliferative and immunoglobulin-secreting capacity of CD27/CD21-defined B-cell subsets upon B-cell receptor and/or CD40 stimulation. We found that CD27 − CD21 − B-cells are significantly increased in frequency relative to healthy donors in HCV-infected patients. CD27 − CD21 − B-cells were hypoproliferative relative to naïve and resting memory B-cells upon agonistic stimulation, but retained similar capacity for antibody secretion. Conclusion: CD27 − CD21 − tissue-like memory B-cells with exhausted proliferation circulate at increased frequency in cirrhotic and non-cirrhotic HCV-infected patients. This B-cell subset does not appear anergic, exhibiting immunoglobulin-secreting capacity on CD40 agonism indistinguishable from other CD27/CD21-defined B-cell subsets.

RESULTS.In AH patients and HBV-inoculated chimpanzees with HBsAg loss, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL11, CXCL13, and IL-21 were elevated at hepatitis with subsequent decline of HBsAg. Interestingly, IL-21 elevation was observed only in resolving AH patients but not in nonresolvers. CXCL13 and IL-21 elevation was not observed in CH patients who failed to attain HBsAg loss, even at hepatic flare. A concomitant increase of CXCL13 and IL-21 was significant in CH patients who attained HBsAg seroconversion with a sequential therapy. CONCLUSION.Elevation of serum CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL11, CXCL13, and IL-21 might be a hallmark of functional cure of AH or CH patients.

SignificanceRecent clinical studies suggest that environmental insults, such as valproic acid (VPA) exposure, in utero can have adverse effects on brain function of the offspring in later life, although the underlying mechanisms of these impairments remain poorly understood. By focusing on the property of neural stem/progenitor cells (NS/PCs) residing in the adult hippocampus, we identified the mechanism of increased seizure sensitivity in prenatally VPA-exposed adult mice. Furthermore, we found that voluntary exercise can overcome the adverse effects through normalizing VPA-induced transcriptome alterations in NS/PCs. We believe that our study provides insights for further understanding and developing treatment strategies for neurological disorders induced by prenatal environmental insults.