Liver inflammatory diseases I Flashcards
Lectures week 1
Liver lobes are made up of microscopic units called…?
Lobules
Lobules comprise rows of…?
Hepatocytes
Which structures encompass the portal triad? (3)
- Branches of hepatic artery
- Hepatic portal vein
- Bile duct
Which structure are hepatocytes in close contact with?
Blood-filled sinusoids
Which structure is present at the midpoint of the liver lobule?
Central vain
How is blood transported out of the liver?
Blood flows out of sinusoids into the central vein
What are the main functions of the liver? (8)
- Metabolism
- Detoxification
- Synthesis
- Blood regulation
- Immune system
- Digestion (bile)
- Removing bacteria from blood
- Storing of vitamins, minerals and sugars
What encompasses the metabolism function of the liver?
Metabolizes or breaking down of nutrients from food to produce energy
What encompasses the detoxification function of the liver?
Removing of potentially toxic byproducts of certain medications
Which compounds are synthesized by the liver? (4)
- Bile
- Most proteins needed by the body
- Substances that regulate blood clotting
- Immunological factors
Which immunological factors are produced by the liver?
- Complement
- SPRRs (CRP, LBP)
- APPs (fibrinogen)
Which cytokine stimulates the production of acute phase proteins?
IL-6
IL-6 is produced by?
Macrophages at the site
Which acute phase proteins increase upon inflammation? (5)
- CRP
- SAA
- Fibrinogen
- C3
- Haptoglobin
Which acute phase proteins decrease upon inflammation? (2)
- Albumin
- Transferrin
What is meant with a tight balance in immune regulation by the liver?
Hepatic immunity vs. tolerance
Liver immunity is needed against? (3)
- HAV
- HBV
- Many bacterial species
Liver tolerance is needed for? (2)
- (Endo) toxins
- Food antigens
The liver also exhibits unwanted tolerance. Against what is this unwanted tolerance response mounted? (4)
- HBV
- HCV
- Malaria
- Tumor metastases
Which immune cells reside in the liver? (8)
- DCs
- NK
- Kuppfer cells
- Gamma-delta T cells
- B cells
- MAIT
- NKT
- LSEC
What are Kuppfer cells?
Liver-resident macrophages
What are the characteristics of Kuppfer cells? (5)
- Phagocytosis
- Direct contact with T cells entering the liver
- Modest stimulatory activity
- Secretion of IL-10
- Expression of scavenger receptors
What is the function of liver sinusoidal cells (LSECs)?
Removal of waste products
Via which ways do LSECs remove waste products? (2)
- Receptor-mediated endocytosis
- Lysosomal degradation
What facilitates the detection and capture of pathogens, proteins and toxins in the liver?
Slow blood flow in the sinusoids
Which types of receptors are used for receptor-mediated endocytosis in the liver? (2)
- Scavenger receptors
- Carbohydrate receptors
What are tolerogenic mechanisms in the liver? (4)
- MHC-I
- MHC-II
- Secretion of anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10, TGF-B)
- Expression of PDL-1
Which characteristic makes MHC-I tolerogenic in the liver?
Cross-presentation to CD8+ T cells -> non-productive activation
Which characteristic makes MHC-II tolerogenic in the liver?
Induction of T-reg
What is special about DCs in the liver?
Tolerize by default -> IL-10 and IDO secretion upon TLR stimulation
What is the main transmission route of HBV?
Blood-to-blood (mainly sexual, mother -> child)
What is the main transmission route of HCV?
Blood-to-blood (mainly needles, body piercings, tattoo’s, IV drugs)
Is vaccination possible for HBV/HCV, yes/no?
HBV: Yes
HCV: No
What are the target cells of both HBV and HCV?
Hepatocytes
True or false: children are often symptomatic in HBV infection
False -> children are often asymptomatic
True or false: adults are often symptomatic in both HBV and HCV
True
What is the main disease pathogenesis in HBV/HCV infection?
Fibrosis -> cirrhosis -> liver failure -> HCC
How can you describe the viral load pattern in HBV?
Fluctuating
How can you describe the viral load pattern in HBV?
High at start -> not per se liver damage
How can you describe the immune response mounted during HBV infection?
T cell abundance correlates with viral clearance -> exhaustion
How can you describe the immune response mounted during HCV infection?
Lack of innate response -> exhaustion
Which therapy is given for chronic hepatitis?
PEG-IFNa + antiviral
How does HBV inhibit innate type1 IFN responses?
Active suppression of signals downstream of PRRs (JAK/STAT)
How does HCV trigger an IFN response, but inhibits their effects?
Cleavage of IPS-1 and TRIF in the downstream pathway -> inhibits sensing dsRNA structures ands reduction of antiviral state
Describe the T cell dynamics in chronic hepatitis patients
T cells initially rise -> magnitude/breath of the response correlates with viral clearance -> T cell responses disappear/exhaustion
Which process induces T cell exhaustion?
Prolonged exposure to antigens
Which cytokines/processes increase/decrease in T cell exhaustion?
Decrease: IFN-y, TNF, CTL, IL-2 and proliferative potential
Increase: apoptosis
How can you tackle cell exhaustion?
Checkpoint inhibition
How do both HBV and HCV lead to HCC? (4)
- Integration (HBV)
- Inflammation and fibrosis
- Cell stress
- ROS
What are the side effects of PEG-IFN? (5)
- Mild sickness
- Headache
- Fatigue
- Heart- and kidney failure
- Depression
HCV has three main genotypes, which genotype accounts for ~72% of the cases?
Genotype 1
IFNaR/IFNyR is present on almost every cell type in the body
IFNaR
True or false: downstream signaling overlaps between IFNa and IFNy
True
How can you use JFH-1 cells to study infectious HCV?
Electroporasis
Which particles made by HCV (and host) and necessary for viral replication are used as therapy targets nowadays? (4)
- NS3
- NS5A
- NS5B
- Cycophilin A (host)
What is NS3?
Serine protease
What is NS5A?
Multifunctional phosphoprotein -> component of the HCV-RNA replication complex
What is NS5B?
RNA-dependent RNA polymerase
What is cyclophilin A?
Host protein interacting with NS5A and NS5B
HCV: What are disadvantages of direct acting antivirals? (4)
- Expensive
- Limited access to treatment in RLS
- Drug-drug interactions
- Screening/prevention programs
What are the steps of the HBV lifecycle? (7)
- HBV Virton binds to cell surface via NTCP
- Core particle migrates to nucleus
- Genome repaired to form cccDNA
- Transcription to form viral mRNA
- Translation of viral mRNA in cytoplasm to form surface core and polymerase proteins
- Core particle assembly
- Recycling genome/export from cell
HBV: What are the HBsAg and HBcAg proteins?
HBsAg = surface core
HBcAg = polymerase proteins
What are the three HBV particle types? Indicate infectious/non-infectious
- HBV filament -> non-infectious
- HBV sphere -> non-infectious
- HBV virion -> infectious
Which proteins are part of the HBV filament, HBV sphere, and HBV virion?
Filament: HBsAg (small and large)
Sphere: HBsAg (small)
Virion: HBsAg, HBcAg, polymerase and HBV DNA
What are the treatment options for HBV? (2)
- PEG-IFN
- Nucleos(t)ide analoges (NUC)
What is the mechanism of action of nucleus(tide) analogues?
Cause chain termination in step from pregenomic RNA to DNA (eliminate AND suppress viral replication)
What is the most targeted step in the viral life cycle of HBV? Why?
Reverse transcriptase step -> not present in humans
What are the effects on immune parameters of prolonged NUC treatment? (6)
- CD8+ impaired viral response
- CD4+ reduced proliferative capacity and low frequency
- Decrease in Treg relative frequency
- NK cell impaired IFNy production
- HBsAg, ALT and HBV DNA decrease
- Clearance of HBsAg is rare
What is the correlation relationship between Treg and HBV DNA?
Inverse
What are immune stimulatory approaches to boost HBV immunity? (3)
- Innate immunomodulators
- Antigen reduction
- Vaccine and checkpoint inhibitors
What are the main limitations of HBV treatments? (3)
- Virus not completely eliminated (cccDNA)
- Not all patients are treated
- Access to care
What are solutions to combat limitations in HBV treatment? (4)
- Eliminate cccDNA
- Cripple the virus
- Inhibit translation of viral proteins
- Boost immune system
HBV: How can you cripple the virus?
Capsid inhibitors
HBV: How can you inhibit the translation of viral proteins? (2)
siRNA, anti-sense oligo
Why is it hard to design a clinical trial for HBV?
Lots of variation between patients
QUANTIFICATION OF B- AND T CELLS