The Effect of Entecavir Therapy on Immune Status in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients

Entecavir (ETV) is an antiviral medication effective in suppressing hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication and improving liver function. However, the relationship between antiviral effect and immune modulation after ETV therapy is not clearly understood. The objective of this study is to investigate the immunoregulatory effect of ETV treatment in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). The frequencies of immune cells, including IFN-γ-producing CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, Th9 cells, regulatory T (Treg) cells, and myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) were determined in the peripheral blood from treatment-naïve and ETV-treated CHB patients. The plasma levels of IL-10, TGF-β, IL-9, TNF-α, IFN-γ, and Arg-1 were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results showed that ETV treatment significantly reduced the levels of liver function indices as well as HBV DNA loads in CHB patients. However, no significant difference in the immune cells percentage was found between the treatment-naïve and ETV-treated patients. Additionally, ETV treatment did not influence the production of TGF-β, IL-9, Arg-1, IFN-γ, and TNF-α. In contrast, the level of IL-10 was remarkably reduced after ETV therapy. IL-10 was a more sensitive effector to ETV-induced inhibition of HBV replication in chronic HBV patients.