Although intrahepatic bile duct injury following bone marrow transplantation is considered to be one feature of graft versus host disease, its developmental mechanism has not been clarified. In order to elucidate this aspect, an immunohistochemical study of the liver following human allogeneic bone marrow transplantation was made. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (Tc) and natural killer cells (NK) were found in contact with intrahepatic bile duct epithelial cells showing degeneration and necrotic changes. These findings suggested a cytotoxic effect of these cells on bile duct epithelial cells. Abnormal expression of HLA class II (DR) antigen was recognized in intrahepatic bile duct epithelial cells following bone marrow transplantation. Cell injury was prominent in cells with weak DR antigen expression, whereas the cells demonstrating conspicuous expression appeared almost normal. There results suggest that abnormal expression of DR antigen plays an important role in the development of GVHD of the intrahepatic bile duct. Acta Pathol Jpn 39: 648 655, 1989.

Recombinant interleukin (IL-2) was administered to 16 patients with HBeantigen-positive chronic active hepatitis in which the diagnosis was ascertained histologically. In 7 of the 16 patients, a decrement of the serum HBe antigen value was observed (Group A). In group A, the findings showed an increment of peripheral Leu ll-positive cells and NKand LAKcell activity, an acute exacerbation during and after IL-2 administration, disappearance of HBe antigen observed in liver biopsy histology, and decrement of serum DNA-pactivity. However,seroconversion of HBsantigen was not observed and no case showedthe elimination status of continuous HBvirus infection. On the other hand, in the other 9 patients (Group B), these changes were not observed and the existence of a HLAtype difference between Group A and B was shown by HLAanalysis. These results indicated that the immuneresponses mediated by IL-2 may play an important role in the development of chronic hepatitis B, and these results maybe regulated genetically.

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