Published online Jul 28, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i28.9486
Revised: February 8, 2014
Accepted: April 1, 2014
Published online: July 28, 2014
Core tip: We compared the host immunity of hepatitis B envelope antigen (HBeAg)-positive patients treated with telbivudine (LDT) to those treated with lamivudine (LAM) and longitudinally investigated the relationship between two important negative immune modulating factors and viral infection parameters in HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients that were treated with the nucleoside analogues (NAs) LDT and LAM. NA-mediated inhibition of hepatitis B virus replication could cause the downregulation of PD-1+ CD8 T cells and Treg cells during the first 24 wk of therapy and could also partially restore the ability of CD8 T cells to secrete pro-inflammatory cytokines. The immune modulating effect associated with NA treatment in CHB patients was correlated with the levels of both HBV DNA and HBeAg.