Rev Med Virol. 2018 Sep 2:e2007. doi: 10.1002/rmv.2007. [Epub ahead of print]
Immune function of plasmacytoid dendritic cells, natural killer cells, and their crosstalk in HBV infection.
Golsaz-Shirazi F1, Amiri MM1, Shokri F1,2.
Author information
1
Department of Immunology, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
2
Monoclonal Antibody Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
Chronic hepatitis B virus infection is a major health problem, with over 245 million chronic carriers worldwide. This persistent infection is thought to be associated with inefficient innate and adaptive immune responses. Natural killer cells (NK cells) and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) are the major innate immune cells which respond to viral infection at the early phase and are considered major components of the antiviral immune response. In this review, we summarize recent findings regarding the role of NK cells, pDCs, and their cross-talk in HBV infection and its chronicity. Although the data regarding the biological function of pDCs and NK cells in HBV infection is still controversial, many studies show that in chronic HBV infection, the cytotoxicity of NK cells is retained, while their capacity to secrete cytokines is strongly impaired. In addition, interferon-α production by pDCs is impaired during chronic HBV infection, and the virus interferes with pDC-NK cell interaction.
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