The variation of CXCR3,CD45RA and CD45RO between liver infiltrating lymphocytes and peripheral blood mononuclear cells in primary biliary cirrhosis

Objective To explore the state of lymphocyte activation and influential factors of PBC patients. Methods Intrahepatic and PBL CD3,CD4,CD8,CD4/CD8,HLADR+CD3+,CD45RA,CD45RO and CXCR3 positive cells in PBC and NASH patients were detected with flow cytometric analysis. Results CD4+ T cells were the most abundant lymphocytes in peripheral blood in PBC,while CD8+ and CD4+ T lymphocytes represented the main subsets in liver.Compared to the lymphocytes in the blood of PBC patients,significant reduction of CD4+ and CD45RA T cells and ratio of CD4 to CD8 was observed in liver.No significant difference was found in the frequency of HLADR+CD3+ and CD45RO between peripheral blood and liver.Furthermore,expression of CXCR3 was significantly higher in IHL than that in PBL.Intrahepatic CD4+ and HLADR+CD3+ T cell counts and the ratio of CD4 to CD8 were significantly increased in PBC patients compared those in NASH patients,with significant reduction of CD45RA and CD45RO counts and increase of CXCR3 expression.No significant difference was found in peripheral blood HLADR+CD3+ cell count or CXCR3 expression between PBC and NASH patients.However,significant reduction of peripheral blood CD45RA cell count was observed in PBC patients. Conclusion Activation and peripheral blood lymphocyte count is correlated to the immune state of liver.The activation and proliferation of CD4+ T cells in the liver may be the critical element in pathogenesis of PBC.CXCR3 may play an important role in hepatic migration of T lymphocyte.The relatively stable memory T lymphocyte count takes responsibility to prolonging of the autoimmune response.