부산대학교 도서관

Objective To investigate the mRNA expression of tumor necrosis factor-alpha-induced protein 8-like 2 (TIPE2), Foxp3 (a functional molecule for regulatory T cells), and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA-4) in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and their clinical significance. Methods A total of 80 CHC patients who were hospitalized in The Third Hospital of Hebei Medical University from May 2012 to December 2016 and did not receive antiviral drugs or immunoregulatory drugs were enrolled as CHC group, and 45 healthy volunteers were enrolled as controls. Quantitative real-time PCR was used to measure the mRNA expression of TIPE2, Foxp3, and CTLA-4 in PBMCs; the correlation between liver biochemical parameters and HCV RNA was observed, as well as the influence of TIPE2 on Foxp3 and CTLA-4. The t-test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups, the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups, and Pearson correlation was used for correlation analysis. Results Compared with the healthy control group, the CHC group had a significant reduction in the mRNA expression of TIPE2 (0.564±0.232 vs 0.704±0.165, t=3.569, P＜0.001) and significant increases in the mRNA expression of Foxp3 (0701±0.405 vs 0.527±0.184, t=2.725, P=0.007) and CTLA-4 (0.638±0.211 vs 0.448±0.134, t=5.449, P＜0.001). The mRNA expression of TIPE2 was negatively correlated with serum alanine aminotransferase (r=-0.368, P=0.001), aspartate aminotransferase (r=-0.417, P＜0.001), total bilirubin (r=-0.416, P＜0.001), and HCV RNA load (r=-0.327, P=0.003) and was positively correlated with the mRNA expression of Foxp3 (r=0.461, P＜0.001) and CTLA-4 (r=0.257, P=0.021). The mRNA expression of Foxp3 was negatively correlated with total bilirubin(r=-0.284,P=0.011). Conclusion CHC patients have abnormalities in the mRNA expression of TIPE2 and the mRNA expression and function of Foxp3 and CTLA-4, which is associated with the degree of hepatocellular injury and viral replication. The TIPE2 gene may be involved in the pathogenesis of CHC by positively regulating immune response mediated by regulatory T cells.