Cosmin Constantin Oprea
Purpose of review
Hepatitis C virus infection and the immune response in babies and adults.
Findings
The presence of MDSCs in new-borns makes Hepatitis C chronic in the first years of life in the case of exposure to virus. The expansion of MDSCs allows the immune system to maintain the chronic infection with Hepatitis C because MDSCs are responsible for the disfunction of the immune system and not the virus itself. MDSCs express CTLA-4, who is a protein receptor that functions as an immune checkpoint and down-regulates immune responses. The expression of the CTLA-4 protein in the lymph node allows the manifestation of hepatitis C and allows the inhibition of T cells against HCV RNA.
Summary
MDSCs are responsible for chronic Hepatitis C infection. The expansion of MDSC is the format in which hepatitis C manages to escape the immune system’s response. Inhibitory protein CTLA-4 expressed by MDSCs in lymph node maintain hepatitis C infection. MDSCs cells have the ability to interact with these signals generated by common progenitor lymphoid cells and in this way the immune system cannot exercise its function.
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