Oligoclonal expansions of CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells in the target organ of patients with biliary atresia.

ABSTRACT:

Background & aims

Biliary atresia is an inflammatory, fibrosclerosing neonatal cholangiopathy, characterized by a periductal infiltrate composed of CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells. The pathogenesis of this disease has been proposed to involve a virus-induced, subsequent autoreactive T cell-mediated bile duct injury. Antigen-specific T-cell immunity involves clonal expansion of T cells expressing similar T-cell receptor (TCR) variable regions of the beta-chain (Vbeta). We hypothesized that the T cells in biliary atresia tissue expressed related TCRs, suggesting that the expansion was in direct response to antigenic stimulation.

Methods

The TCR Vbeta repertoire of T cells from the liver, extrahepatic bile duct remnants, and peripheral blood of biliary atresia and other cholestatic d

SUBMITTER: Mack CL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1949019 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature