Immunophenotypic profiles of blood and liver-resident NK cell subsets.

<p>Immunophenotyping of liver and blood NK cell subsets in groups of HCV-infected and –uninfected individuals was performed by flow cytometry, and both tissue-specific differences (A) and disease-specific differences (B) were analyzed. Data is presented as a heatmap, with values displayed as relative within each row. Statistical significance was accepted at p<0.05 and is indicated by * (p<0.05), ** (p<0.01), *** (p<0.001) and **** (p<0.0001).</p

Clinical characteristics of HCV-infected individuals.

<p>*p.i. =  post infection; Risk factor for HCV acquisition; GT =  HCV genotype; ND = not determined. # normal range of ALT = 7–56 IU/ml, AST = 5–40 IU/ml.</p

Tissue- and disease-specific differences in NK cell functionality.

<p>Functional responses of liver-resident and blood NK cells were assessed in groups of HCV-infected and –uninfected individuals. NK cell degranulation (CD107a) and cytokine production (MIP1β and IFNγ) were measured by flow cytometry in the absence (A) or presence (B) of K562 cells (NKG2D ligation), 721.221 cells (NCR ligation) or antibody-coated p815 cells (ADCC-mediated stimulation). Statistical significance was accepted at p<0.05 and is indicated by * (p<0.05), ** (p<0.01), *** (p<0.001) and **** (p<0.0001).</p

NK cell subsets and distribution in liver and blood.

<p>NK cells were identified in the blood and liver of groups of HCV-infected and -uninfected individuals by flow cytometry using a robust gating strategy (A). The size of the NK and T cell populations as a percentage of the total lymphocyte population, as well as the T:NK cell ratio was calculated in the liver and blood in HCV-infected and -uninfected individuals (B), as was the contribution of the CD56^bright and CD56^dim NK cell subsets to the total NK cell population (C). Statistical significance was accepted at p<0.05 and is indicated by * (p<0.05), ** (p<0.01) and *** (p<0.001).</p

Unique liver and blood NK phenotypes associate with markers of disease progression.

<p>Correlative analysis of NK cell immunophenotype and function in the liver and blood with clinical measures of HCV infection such as ISHAK score, ALT, AST, serum bilirubin, HCV RNA and INR were performed. The significant associations of liver NK cell receptors with clinical markers are displayed (A) along with correlations between the frequency of CD161+, (B) and perforin expression on blood CD56^bright NK cells (C) with clinical markers and the expression of other NK cell receptors. Correlations were done using Spearman's rank test and statistical significance was accepted at p<0.05 and is indicated by * (p<0.05), ** (p<0.01) and *** (p<0.001).</p

Reasons for liver surgery in non-HCV infected individuals.

<p>Reasons for liver surgery in non-HCV infected individuals.</p