Evidence for a deficiency of interferon production in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection acquired in adult life

✍ Scribed by Tadashi Ikeda; Andrew M. L. Lever; Professor Howard C. Thomas

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1986
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 406 KB
• Volume: 6
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0270-9139
• DOI: 10.1002/hep.1840060525

✦ Synopsis

Ninety per cent of patients infected in adult life with the hepatitis B virus clear the virus completely and 10% develop chronic infection. There is evidence for the involvement of interferon in the clearance of acute hepatitis B virus infection. We report that, in in vitro tests, some hepatitis B virus carriers have a reduced capacity to produce a-and y-interferon which is unrelated to the level of viral replication and to the severity of the liver disease and that the level of 2-5 oligoadenylate synthetase in their livers is only minimally elevated compared to controls. Treatment with lymphoblastoid (a-) interferon leads to a marked rise in 2-5 oligoadenylate synthetase activity. These data indicate that some patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection acquired in adult life have a partial deficiency of production of a-interferon but can respond to exogenous a-interferon. These observations provide a logical basis for attempts to treat this condition with interferons.