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©The Author(s) 2020. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Decreased of BAFF-R expression and B cells maturation in patients with hepatitis B virus-related hepatocellular carcinoma
Apichaya Khlaiphuengsin, Natthaya Chuaypen, Pimpayao Sodsai, Supranee Buranapraditkun, Tadech Boonpiyathad, Nattiya Hirankarn, Pisit Tangkijvanich
Apichaya Khlaiphuengsin, Natthaya Chuaypen, Pisit Tangkijvanich, Center of Excellence in Hepatitis and Liver Cancer, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Pimpayao Sodsai, Nattiya Hirankarn, Center of Excellence in Immunology and Immune-mediated Diseases, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Supranee Buranapraditkun, Division of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Supranee Buranapraditkun, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Supranee Buranapraditkun, Center of Excellence in Vaccine Research and Development (Chula Vaccine Research Center), Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Tadech Boonpiyathad, Department of Medicine, Phramongkutklao Hospital, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
Author contributions: Khlaiphuengsin A designed the research, performed the research and drafted the manuscript; Chuaypen N, Sodsai P and Buranapraditkun S supervised the report and contributed to the analysis; Boonpiyathad T and Hirankarn N supervised the report; Tangkijvanich P provided clinical advice, drafted and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by the Thailand Research Fund, No. RTA6280004; the Grant for Chula Research Scholar, No. CU-GRS-61-07-30-02; Second Century Fund (C2F), Chulalongkorn University; and the Center of Excellence in Hepatitis and Liver Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University.
Institutional review board statement: The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand (IRB no. 438/60).
Informed consent statement: All study participants provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Pisit Tangkijvanich, MD, Doctor, Professor, Center of Excellence in Hepatitis and Liver Cancer, Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, 1873 Rama 4 Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand. pisittkvn@yahoo.com
Received: January 27, 2020
Peer-review started: February 03, 2020
First decision: February 29, 2020
Revised: March 27, 2020
Accepted: May 13, 2020
Article in press: May 13, 2020
Published online: May 28, 2020
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background
Recently, B cell-activating factor (BAFF) receptors and B cell subsets play diverse but crucial roles in modulating B cell function. Therefore, analysis of their expression and subpopulation frequencies could provide more insights into the immunological characteristics of B cell selection in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).
Research motivation
To evaluate the association of BAFF receptors on B cell subsets according to clinical outcome of patients with chronic HBV infection.
Research objectives
This study aimed to compare the expression of BAFF receptors and the distribution of B cell subsets in the peripheral blood of patients with HBV-related HCC compared to individuals without HCC and healthy controls.
Research methods
Peripheral blood samples collected from chronic HBV infected patients with or without HCC and healthy controls were assessed for BAFF receptors [BAFF-R(B cell-activating factor receptor), transmembrane activator and cyclophilin ligand interactor, B-cell maturation antigen] and B cell subpopulations by multicolor flow cytometry.
Research results
The frequency of BAFF-R expression on B cells was significantly decreased in HBV-related HCC compared with HBV patients without HCC and healthy controls. In addition, the frequency of CD27+IgD+ memory B cells, CD27+IgD- class switched memory B cells and plasmablasts were significantly lower in patients with HCC compared to the non-HCC group. However, the frequency of naïve and transitional B cell did not differ significantly among groups. Moreover, decreased BAFF-R expression on B cells was significantly correlated with tumor size and more advanced Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer stages.
Research conclusions
The expression of BAFF-R on B cells was significantly decreased that involved in the different frequencies of B cells maturation in patients with HCC.
Research perspectives
Larger samples and the mechanistic roles of B cell-mediated immune response in hepa-tocarcinogenesis are needed to further validate.
