Increased degranulation of natural killer cells during acute HCV correlates with the magnitude of virus-specific T cell responses.

ABSTRACT:

Background & aims

Natural killer (NK) cells provide early defense against viral infections by killing infected cells and producing cytokines that inhibit viral replication. NK cells also interact with dendritic cells (DCs) and this reciprocal interaction regulates both innate and adaptive immunity. Genetic studies have suggested that NK cell activity is a determinant of HCV infectious outcome but a functional correlation has not been established. We hypothesized that increased NK cell activity during acute HCV infection correlates with spontaneous viral clearance.

Methods

We used multiparametric flow cytometry to monitor longitudinally the phenotype and the activity of NK cells in a cohort of intravenous drug users following HCV exposure. Three groups were studied: acute HCV

SUBMITTER: Pelletier S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4178223 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature