Serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor levels in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection and its relation with anti-HBc

AIM: To investigate the relationship between serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) level and anti-HBc in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. METHODS: Sera from 100 patients with chronic HBV infection and 30 healthy controls were included in this study. The patients were divided into group A [HBsAg (+), HBeAg (+) and anti-HBc (+), n=50] and group B [HBsAg (+), HBeAg (+) and anti-HBc (-), n=50]. sIL-2R levels were determined using ELISA. HBV DNA and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were also detected. RESULTS: Serum sIL-2R levels were significantly higher in patients with chronic HBV infection than in healthy controls. Moreover, serum sIL-2R levels were significantly higher in patients with HBsAg (+), HBeAg (+) and anti-HBc (+) (976.56+/-213.51x10(3) U/L) than in patients with HBsAg (+), HBeAg (+) and anti-HBc (-) (393.41+/-189.54x10(3) U/L, P<0.01). A significant relationship was found between serum sIL-2R and ALT levels (P<0.01) in patients with chronic HBV infection, but there was no correlation between sIL-2R and HBV DNA levels. The anti-HBc status was significantly related to the age of patients (P<0.01). CONCLUSION: The high sIL-2R level is related to positive anti-HBc in chronic hepatitis B patients. Positive anti-HBc may be related to T-lymphocyte activation and negative anti-HBc may imply immune tolerance in these patients.