Alterations in immunophenotype of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in children with chronic viral hepatitis following anti-viral therapy

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact interferon type I based anti-viral therapy on the immune system of chronically infected children with hepatitis C and B virus. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were examined by three-color flow cytometry, using a panel of fluorochrome labeled monoclonal antibodies. It was found that the majority of white blood cell subsets were decreased in patients after termination of long-term anti-viral treatment. In particular, potentially cytotoxic, effector cell subsets, such as natural killer, natural killer T-lymphocytes and CD8 + CD28 - T cells were significantly decreased. Moreover, plasmacytoid dendritic cells were decreased, both in percentage and in absolute values. These data suggest that interferon-α based treatment, apart from its anti-viral effect, has also remarkable impact on patient's cell-mediated immunity.